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COME: 



The Inspiring Word of Grace, 



SUPPLEMENTED BY 



A SERMON 



ON THE SIN AGAINST THE HOLY GHOST, 



EXHIBITING 



The Fearful Import of a Refusal of Grace. 



By REV. W. O. OWEN. 



••Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters."— Isaiah, 
••And the Lord said, My Spirit shall not always strive with 
man."— Genesis. 






LANCASTER, PA. : 

THE NEAV ERA STEAM BOOK PRINT. 

1879. 



lr 



£l> 






Entered according to Act of Congress in the year 1879, 
By W. O. OWEN, "* 
In the office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington. 



The Library 
of Congress 



WASHINGTON 



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e 



PREFACE 



The following book was prepared from the outlines of a 
^~ discourse preached several years ago by the author. Al- 
though traces of its origin are still visible in its pages, 
even after the utmost care taken to dress it in a style becom- 
ing the rank it now assumes, its thoughts are, nevertheless, 
new and fresh, as most of it was written during the process 
of publication. Its old bones, like those in Ezekial's vision, 
are knit together with new sinews, are clothed with new 
flesh, and the whole system is animated with new life. 

This book is intended to supply a local want. The author 
desires to have the principles he regularly teaches thrown 
into such a form that they may be studied with deliberation. 
Hence, this book, clothed in an easy and popular style, is 
intended for the people and to supplement the pulpit. 

In this connection he would suggest that the press, instead 
of being the exclusive privilege of great genius, should be, 
more generally, associated with ministerial work. Much 
valuable labor wasted in the delivery of sermons would, in 
this way, be saved. Could an exact copy of the impression a 
sermon made on even the most intelligent part of an audi- 
ence be secured, it would scarcely be recognized by the min- 
ister as his own production. It would probably want the 
very thoughts he prized the most ; it would be such a mutila- 
tion of what he so carefully prepared by the midnight lamp 
as to be almost a burlesque on writing beautiful thoughts for 
the pulpit ; and, exhibiting the mere shreds of a closely 
woven argument, it would afford him a fair specimen of the 
terrible waste his best efforts must suffer in delivery. The 
hearer cannot digest in forty minutes what engaged the min- 
ister's thoughts for a week. Hurried on by the delivery, he 
must, of course, skip over those parts which must be studied 
at leisure. The minister should then be free to use the press 
to give permanence to his thoughts. Why should he apolo- 

(iii) 



IV. PKKl \< I.. 



gize for writing even an inferior book when he can preach an 
inferior sermon with the greatest impunity? 

Considerable space in this book has been devoted to "The 
Bride's Call," and "The Hearer's Call." These agents, 
though subordinate to the Spirit, represent the human part 
of a divine plan for publishing the Gospel ; and the discus- 
sion of their calls involves the necessity of defining duties, 
correcting errors and inciting Christian activity. Besides, 
the author, having been called by Providence to oversee a 
new interest, is anxious at the start to establish in the minds 
of his hearers the cardinal principles of church prosperity. 
He gives a practical turn to the exercises of devotion, and 
combats the notion that the church is a mere place of enter- 
tainment. This notion shows itself in magnificent temples, 
in indolent hearers and in crushing mortgages. Not until 
the church becomes more intent on doing good than on re- 
ceiving good will those encumbrances be lifted which are 
creating so much scandal. The responsibilities of the hearer 
are fully discussed. He is liable to forget that he is a factor 
in all church work, and to hope that he will be something in 
heaven while he is content to be nothing on earth. 

The sermon on "the sin against the Holy Ghost" was not 
prepared for this work. The author's attention was directed 
to this grave subject by the distress of one of his most exem- 
plary members who had become morbidly sensitive in regard 
to this sin. This sermon has been sanctioned by the divine 
blessing in most special ways and is inserted here as an appro- 
priate supplement to " Come, The Inspiring Word of Grace." 

The author claims no superior merit for this book. He is 
conscious of its many imperfections. Book-making is not his 
profession. The book grew incidentally by the force of cir- 
cumstances rather than from any pre-arranged plan ; and, to 
say nothing of its other defects, it wants that systematic 
arrangement generally seen in works which were books in 
conception. It is now offered, such as it is, to the public, 
with the sincere desire that it may do good. 

W. O. Owen. 
Chestnut Level, Pa., Feb. 24, 1879. 



CONTENTS 



PAGE. 

Preface 3 

I. 

THE SYSTEM OF GRACE MADE AVAILABLE BY 
THE WORD COME. 

Text — Come, a beautiful and inspiring word — These qual- 
ities illustrated in Rev. 22 : 17 — Theme and arrange- 
ment — The system of grace — Historical import — 
Doctrinal development — Unity of the Scriptures — A 
finished blessing — Illustrated by water — Water pu- 
rifies — Quenches thirst — Is most beautiful and beau- 
tifying — " There is a river, the streams whereof shall 
make glad the city of God" — System of grace, the 
river, flowing out in promises to gladden the hearts 
of believers — Gladdens the moral face of the earth 
— Cheers revelation — Beautifies human nature- 
Adorns the outward man — Water, a free gift of 
Providence — Grace a free gift — Water an inexhaus- 
tible element — Stream flowing from Calvary — Con- 
clusion 9-33 

II. 

THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE WHOSE OFFICE IS 

TO SAY, COME. 

THE SPIRIT'S CALL. 

In nature much concealed value — Retired worth — Grace 
made available — Messengers of grace — The Spirit's 
call necessary — Human talent inadequate — Divine 
agency required — The Holy Ghost given — His call 
general and special — Nature of His special call — Man 
wants power and inclination — The Spirit convinces 
of sin — Of righteousness — Shows the efficacy of the 

(v) 



VI. CONTENTS. 



atonement 1 — Day of Pentecost — Tendency to deprive 
this event of its practical bearing — Intimation of 
danger — Method of the Spirit's call — He reveals the 
hidden excellency of truths in the Bible — Operates 
in harmony with man's mental constitution — 
Method illustrated in repentance — In faith — Sum- 
ming up — Objection answered 33-57 

THE BRIDE'S CALL. 

Metaphorical name — A fine touch — Why the church is 
employed by the Spirit — Her call does not collide 
with the functions of the Spirit — The church a holy 
institution — A missionary institution — Arrangement 
— She calls by her character — She calls by her songs 
of praise — Music attractive — Lulls the passions — 
The prophet Elisha — Enthusiasm the least benefit 
the sinner derives from sacred music — Sacred music 
an exercise of the church — Is intended for her im- 
provement — The sinner's greatest benefits derived 
from the zeal it kindles in the church — Music intended 
for a display does not secure these results — Expense 
of fashionable church music — Instrumental music in 
churches — The church invites by her prayers — This 
call partially direct — Subjective benefits of prayer — 
Objective influence — Objections answered — Efficacy 
of prayer for sinners — Saul of Tarsus — Revivals — 
The church calls through the ministry — Eloquence 
of Paul at Lystra — The pulpit orator has a two-fold 
advantage — The ministry in relation to the church — 
The Press — This call diffusive — Thorough — Durable 
— Science and politics teach the church a lesson — 
Missionary societies — The church in heaven says, 
Come — Posthumous influence — Bunyan, Baxter, and 
others — Dr. Thomas Scott — Saints in heaven have 
an unlimited lease for usefulness — Their calls more 
impressive — A circumstance the mind readily glides 
over. 57-114 



CONTENTS. Vll, 



THE HEARER'S CALL. 

Individual responsibilities often not felt — The church is 
the individual multiplied — Individual responsibilities 
not absorbed in the ministry — Profession-hood vs. 
manhood — Punishment of dissenters — Dean Stan- 
ley's apology — To do good, a natural privilege — 
Duty of assisting the ministry in a work of mutual 
interest — How hearers may assist their pastor — 
Their obligation to do so — The hearer a factor in 
church work — Much of this work he cannot do 
personally — Must then be represented by a minister 
— The obligations of hearers not eliminated from 
ministerial work — They are responsible for his fail- 
ures — They should pray for him — Prayer implies 
corresponding effort — Hearers should assist their 
pastor by cultivating piety — By doing in a simpler 
way much of his work — The sphere of Christian 
ladies — Assistance necessary to a successful ministry 
Another line of argumentation — Ministerial jealousy 
appeased — The obligation to evangelize the world 
rests with Christians in general — Principles deter- 
mining our duty — The nearer* defined — His opportu- 
nities — The practical fisherman — Mr. Moody — The 
Young Men's Christian Association — A faithful pul- 
pit implies a working laity — Piety must be culti- 
vated by doing good — We teach that we may learn 
— We learn that we may teach — We should build 
churches for practical culture — A desire only to re- 
ceive good censurable — Selfish and unreasonable 
expectations may cause a minister's removal — The 
notion that the ministry is the only medium of use- 
fulness quite prevalent — Mutual assistance — A 
converted membership insisted on — Responsibility 
should be placed on every member — Organized efforts 
— Sermons should awaken compassion for sinners — 
A blessing invoked on laymen .114-156 



Vlll. CONTENTS. 



III. 

THE QUALIFICATIONS OF THOSE WHOSE PRIVI- 
LEGE IT IS TO COME. 

Recapitulation — The qualifications for salvation — The 
term qualification suspicious — The qualifications for 
grace not meritorious — Illustration — A mere desire 
not meritorious — Nor a resolution — The prodigal son 
— These conditions include the elements of repentance 
and faith — Repentance explained — David's penitence 
— A willingness to go to Christ practically includes 
saving faith — The will not always influenced by desire 
— A belief in some attainable good, united with desire, 
will influence a suitable ehoice-Those having gracious 
desires invited to Christ — The danger of hesitancy — 
The import of an absolute refusal of grace 156-170 



IV. 

THE REFUSAL: OR THE NATURE OF THE SIN 

AGAINST THE HOLY GHOST. 

Text — Mysteries in the Bible — Many truths in relation 
to God beyond finite research — Truths relating to 
the duty of man intended to be known — A practical 
question — This sin not a rare depravity — Does not 
rest on the outward act of speaking — Is a resistance 
of the heart to the Spirit — This exegesis supported 
by arguments — Special mention is made of the Spirit 
— Argument from analogy — Argument drawn from 
the sinner's relation to the Spirit — This sin cannot 
be committed against the Father — Nor against the 
Son — Nor in a state of grace — Must be committed 
by the impenitent against the Spirit — How this be- 
comes unpardonable — First inference — Second infer- 
ence — Scriptural illustrations — The inhabitants of 
the old world — King Saul — David's chief concern — 
Our Saviour's lamentation over Jerusalem — The sin 
unto death — Conclusion — Comfort for the sensitive 
Christian — Hopeless regret felt for the abandoned — 
Solicitude for sinners 170-195 






THE SYSTEM OF GRACE MADE AVAILABLE BY 
THE WORD, COME. 



"And the Spirit and the Bride say, come. And let him 
that heareth say, come. And let him that is athirst, come. 
And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely." 
Rev. xxii: 17. 

Come is one of the most beautiful and most inspir- 
ing words in our language. It is a pure Anglo-Saxon 
word and is remarkable, especially, for its musical 
power. It gratifies us with a mellow harmony which 
softly glides away in a sweet cadence resembling the 
dying sound of the golden bell which, often having 
left the ear, still lingers delightfully in the soul. 
Come-e-e-e. The bell in the steeple, inviting souls 
thirsting for divine knowledge to the house of the 
Lord, almost articulates this word — almost says, in 
the language of our compassionate Saviour, Come, 
come, come unto me. How unlike is it to the opposite 
word, depart, which is not only harsh to the ear, but 
heavy to the heart, which it sinks into black despair. 

But, its rhetorical beauty is the least of its excel- 
lencies. It has meaning as well as harmoiry. It has 
delight for the soul, as well as melody for the ear. 
Come is one of our most inspiring words. You may 
say to a man perishing in a desert, who would give 
all he is worth for a single cup of cold water, "Friend, 
I can tell you of a fountain, pure and sparkling, that 
would quench your thirst, but it is a thousand miles 

(9) 



10 THE SYSTEM OF' GRACE 

off, too far, indeed, to be of any service to you." 
How can this kind of talk revive the flagging ener- 
gies of that man? Your fine description of that 
fountain will only torture him — will only excite his 
thirst, intensify his sufferings, and sink him more 
speedily into hopeless despondency. But, if you 
say, " Friend, I have just discovered a spring of pure 
cold water, and have come to you to say — ; Come, 
drink and live,' " immediately the shadows of despair 
are dispelled, hope spreads over his countenance its 
bright rays, and energy is diffused through his tot- 
tering limbs. He arises. He is revived even before 
his thirst is quenched. What has thus transformed 
him? It is the power in the word come, pointing to 
a near and available relief, that changes his aspect 
and revives his energies. You remember, brethren, 
when you felt like this man, and when, like him, you 
were cheered by the power of the word, come. When 
you wandered on the barren mountain of sin, when 
you saw above nothing but an angry God, beneath 
nothing but a gulf of darkness, before, nothing but 
endless misery, and behind, nothing but the path of 
folly pursued, alas, all the days of your life; then you 
were famishing. When a messenger of peace came 
to you saying, " Get out of this wilderness of despair, 
come to the Fountain of Life," then you felt all the 
power of the word, come, and responded : 

"I'll go to Jesus^ though my sin 

Hath like a mountain rose; 
I know His courts, I'll enter in, ' 

Whatever may oppose." 



MADK AVAIL. Mil.!:. 11 



The word come is inspiring because it excites hope, 
and it loses its power whenever hope, by fruition or 
despair, can have no possible existence. Hence, 
come, peculiarly belongs to the current language of 
this world. In Heaven hope is lost in fruition, and 
angels and the spirits of just men made perfect, who 
are always bathing in the ocean of divine love, always 
drinking from the fount of bliss, can never be cheered 
forward by a messenger who should say to them,. 
"come.' 7 In perdition, through whose dark crevices 
no stream of life flows to afford even a drop of cold 
water to -quench the thirst of those who are burning 
under a torturing sense of lost blessings, the word, 
come, is never heard. But, on earth, where there is 
neither the fruition of heaven, nor the despair of per- 
dition, where desire may be accompanied with a rea- 
sonable 'expectation of obtaining actual good, the 
word, come, has a peculiar animating power. Here 
it excites hope— the anchor of the soul. 

Then, the word, come, is at once beautiful and 
inspiring, and both these qualities are fully sustained 
in the language of our text: "And the Spirit and the 
Bride sa} T , come. And let him that heareth say, 
come. And let him that is athirst, come. And who- 
soever will, let him take the water of life freely. 7 
Every one must discover a beauty in all this. Every 
sentence flows along as smoothly as "the pure river 
of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of 
the throne of God and of the Lamb," to which it in- 
vites us, and then we are conducted to a most har- 
monious conclusion. That \o\\ ma} 7 see the influence 
the word, come, exerts in producing this delightful 



12 THE SYSTEM OF GRACE 

effect, substitute for it any other word, and the pas- 
sage will at once lose all its harmony. 

But, this is also one of the most inspiring passages 
of Scripture. It has raised many souls from blank 
despair ; awakened in them the most lively expecta- 
tions ; and, under the Holy Spirit, has diffused through 
all their faculties an energy that conducted them 
into the highest spiritual enjoyments. O, how many 
ransomed souls in the other world can point to this 
passage and say, " there is the power that lifted me 
from wretchedness into Heaven." But what gives 
this passage its animating power? Certainly, the 
metaphor under which it presents the sinner excites 
the most wretched feelings. Nothing can be more 
agonizing to the heart than the contemplation of a 
man thirsting and dying for the want of water. It 
is true that a fountain, the metaphor under which it 
presents eternal life, is associated with refreshing 
ideas. But these very ideas increase the intensity of 
the sufferings of those who are thirsting, and yet 
have no interest in its flowing stream. Do 3^011 not 
know that the condition of the lost is rendered most 
acutely painful by their beholding from the shores of 
perdition a living fountain, affording others the purest 
enjoyments, which it forever denies them? Come, 
however, sounding across what would otherwise be a 
chasm of despair, gives this encouraging passage of 
Scripture all its animating power. It excites hope. 
It forms a ligament between desire and expectation. 
It opens a channel between the fountain of life and 
the soul thirsting for the living God. Borne on the 
lips of both the Eternal Spirit and the church of the 



MADE AVAILABLE. 13 



Living God, it tells the sinner who thirsts that he 
may "take the water of life freely." 

The theme we derive from this passage is, Come, 
the Inspiring Word of Grace. Our thoughts on this 
theme shall be arranged under the following heads: 

I. The system of Grace made available by the word, 
come. 

II. The Messengers whose office it is to say, come. 

III. The qualifications of those whose privilege it 
is to come. 

I. In this discourse we shall dwell exclusively upon 
the System of Grace made available by the word, 
come. TVe shall first bestow a few remarks upon the 
preparation of this system; and, secondly, discuss 
more fully its application in a state of completion. 

1. The preparation of this sj'stem employed thou- 
sands of }^ears, and systemizes the whole history of 
the divine administration in relation to the world, 
prior to the establishment of the Gospel era. There 
is a remarkable harmony of all the events which 
enter into the system of grace. Like the links of a 
chain, the}' are so many separate parts ; but, linked 
together, the}' form one undivided whole. Histori- 
cally, this system had its origin in Eden, (or rather 
in Eden arose the necessity for this system,) and in 
its operations will extend to the glorious era of the 
universal reign of King Jesus, when Eden will again 
appear in all her beaut}' and delight. In this way 
the extremes of this sj'stem must meet. It commenced 
in Eden and, in its restorative capacit}^, must termi- 
nate in Eden. In the latter relation Eden is called 



14 THE SYSTEM OF GRACE 

the New Jerusalem, whicli John, on the Isle of Pat- 
mos, most beautifully describes as follows: "And he 
showed' me a pure river of water of life, clear as 
crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and the 
Lamb. In the midst of the street of it, and on either 
side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare 
twelve manner of fruits,, and yielded her fruit every 
month: and the leaves of the tree were for the heal- 
ing of the nations. And there shall be no more curse : 
but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it ; 
and his servants shall serve him: And they shall 
see his face ; and his name shall be in their foreheads." 
In this description of Paradise regained, can 3^011 not 
see an allusion to Paradise lost ? 

Doctrinally, this system extends from Genesis to 
Revelation; and all the intermediate events depend 
upon each other as one stone rests upon another from 
the foundation to the top of the building. At first, 
we have a description of man in his primeval condi- 
tion, enjoying the approving glances of his Maker. 
Then, we have his fall, his shame, and his attempt to 
hide from Jehovah. Then, w^e have his curse, to re- 
move which, four thousand years after, our blessed 
Saviour expired on Mount Calvary. Then, w^e have 
the promise of his recovery given in the declaration 
that "the seed of the woman shall bruise the serpent's 
head." Then we have the patriarchal dispensation 
in which the information relative to Jehovah is mea- 
gre, confined to only a few of his attributes. Then, 
in a higher state of development of this system, we 
have the wonderful machinery of the Mosaic dispen- 
sation, designed to convey through the senses to the 



MADE AVAILABLE. 15 



mind correct ideas of God's holiness, justice and 

mercy, and which was preparatory to the spiritual 
dispensation to which it relates in its ceremonial and 
sacrificial elements. Then we have the prophets who 
predict the establishment, prosperity, and ultimate 
triumph of the kingdom of Christ. Then we have 
the dispensation of John the Baptist, which is a con- 
necting link between Judaism and Christian^. Then 
we have the life, character and miracles of Christ; 
then, his sufferings, death and resurrection; then, the 
comprehensive commission he gave his apostles ; then 
his ascension and the outpouring of the Hobv Spirit 
on the da} r of Pentecost. And now this system is 
completed, and we have it tried, and its sufficienc}" 
shown in the establishment of Christian churches in 
Judea, Samaria, and throughout the Roman empire. 
After the trial of this system which proves it to be 
sufficient to meet the requirements of man's fallen 
nature, we have, then, in the conclusion of divine 
revelation, the gracious invitation of Christ Jesus, 
"the root and offspring of David and the bright and 
morning star," to all who need salvation, to partake 
freely of its purifying and saving virtues. 

Thus we see the gradual development of the suc- 
cessive parts of this plan of salvation. It is true, in 
the Bible in which this sj^stem is recorded, there is a 
diversit}^ of style and language. Sometimes it de- 
nounces or expostulates. Sometimes it is descrip- 
tive or pathetic. Sometimes it is poetical, sententious 
or devotional. Sometimes biographical or historical, 
relating to individuals, families or nations. But the 
thoughtful reader will discover running through all 



16 THE SYSTEM OF GRACE 



this diversity an all-absorbing design — a S3 T stcm into 
which converges everything from beginning to end. 
Though thousands of years intervened, we see here 
the intimate relation between Genesis and Revelation. 
In the one we have a record of the terrible pollution 
into which man fell. But there is now a fountain 
opened in the House of David for sin and unclean- 
ness. Hence, in the conclusion of the other, we have 
an invitation to all guilty and polluted sinners to 
"take the water of life freely." 

2. But come invites us to a finished blessing. We 
shall, therefore, notice more particular^ the system 
of grace in a state of completion, and shall illustrate 
its purifying and life-giving efficacy under the beau- 
tiful and appropriate figure of water. In Scripture, 
water has a variety of metaphorical meanings; but 
never is it more aptly employed than when made to 
represent the efficacy and freeness of grace in Christ 
Jesus. 

Water is used for cleansing purposes. This illus- 
trates the purifying influence of grace. Sin has defiled 
all man's inward feelings, faculties and powers. This 
moral pollution often affects his outward condition, 
and clothes him in rags; makes him lie down in filth; 
and reduces him to such wretchedness that, like the 
prodigal, who wasted his substance in riotous living, 
he fain would satisfy his hunger with the husks which 
the swine do eat. Sin extends its defiling influence 
to all his actions and relations, so that it becomes not 
only an individual but a social, and not only a social, 
but a national pollution. Now, it is the peculiar office 



MADE AVAIIiABLE. 17 



of divine grace to raise man from a condition of 
moral wretchedness, and to cleanse the conscience 
and affections of all their guilt and defilement by the 
"washing of regeneration." This is the "fountain 
opened for sin and uncleanness." 

Water will quench thirst, and is necessary to the 
support of life. Every person, in his unregenerate 
condition, has a desire for something that the world 
can never give. This something is enduring, unal- 
loyed, peace and happiness. But, such is the sinner's 
delusion, that he will endure almost an}' hardship, 
will submit to almost any mortification, and will 
climb ascents the most slippery and hazardous for 
"meat that satisfieth not." And the saddest feature 
of all is, that the treasures of the world, instead of 
satisfying the desire of the heart, only increase it, 
only render the sufferings of the poor deluded soul 
the more intolerable. I once read a sad account of a 
company of soldiers who traveled a long time in a 
country destitute of water. They were read}' to per- 
ish, when several of their number discovered a beau- 
tiful sparkling fountain. The}' instantly cried out in 
great raptures of joy— water! water!! water!!! Im- 
mediately the soldiers ran to the beautiful fountain, 
and so eager were they to quench their thirst, that 
some lifted the water to their mouths with their 
hands, and others with their hats; but what must 
have been their disappointment when, tasting it, they 
found it to be salt water. One of the officers, instant- 
ly struck with the danger of their situation, raised 
his hands and cried out at the top of his voice — Go 



18 THE SYSTEM OF GRACE 

back! Go back!! Salt ivater! Salt water!! Had they 
drunk of that water it would have so increased their 
thirst that their condition would have been rendered 
unendurable, and every man would have speedily 
"dropped his carcass in the wilderness." Well, this 
is the character of the honors, riches and pleasures of 
this world. They prove to be salt water to the delu- 
ded soul. Sinners eagerly grasp after them; but 
every acquisition they make, instead of satisfying 
their desire, only increases it, only intensifies their 
sufferings, and hastens on more rapidly their destruc- 
tion. But, .thank God, the water of salvation is not 
sait water. It will quench the thirst; it will satisfy 
the desire of the heart ; it will refresh the soul, and 
make a man strong, cheerful and happy. This is the 
water our Saviour referred to, when he said to the 
woman of Samaria : " If thou knewest the gift of God, 
and who it is that sayeth to thee, Give me to drink, 
thou would 'st have asked of him and he would have 
given thee living water. Whosoever drinketh of the 
water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but 
the water that T shall give him shall be in him a well 
of water springing up into everlasting life." Thank 
God for this water, and thank him for the hearty and 
free invitation to partake of its saving and refreshing 
virtues ! " Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to 
the waters !" " On the last, the great day of the feast, 
Jesus stood and cried, If any man thirst let him come 
unto me and drink." 

Water possesses healing virtues. Medicinal springs 
are resorted to all over the world. The pool of Be- 
thesda was famous, in the da} r s of our Saviour, for 



MA I )K AVAILABLE. ' 10 



the healing virtues of its waters; but this we are told 
was owing to a miraculous cause. "An angel de- 
scended into the pool at certain seasons, and troubled 
the waters; and whosoever first after the troubling 
of the waters, stepped in, was made whole of what- 
ever disease he had." We also read in the Old Tes- 
tament that Naaman, the Syrian, by direction of 
Elisha, was healed of an inveterate leprosy by dipping 
himself seven times in the river Jordan. And the 
blind man whom our Saviour healed by placing clay 
on his e}^es was directed to go and wash in the pool 
of Siloam. He went, he washed, and he came seeing. 
In nothing is the similitude between w r ater and divine 
grace more striking than in a medicinal point of view. 
The final design of divine grace is the eradication from 
the soul of the fatal virulency of sin diffused through 
all its powers ; its healthy employment in the delight- 
ful services of its Creator; and its final elevation to 
a state of constant enjoyment. 0, why is so little 
interest felt in this remedy? Why so few who avail 
themselves of its virtues? Should a fountain open 
somewhere, possessing virtues capable of curing every 
bodily disease, it would be the theme of universal 
praise, and would attract immense crowds of diseased 
pilgrims from every part of the world, who would im- 
patiently w^ait for an opportunity to step in and be 
healed of their several maladies. Is the salvation of 
the soul less important? Whj T , then, do we not see 
such immense crowds rushing to the Fountain of Life ? 

Water is one of the most beautiful and most beau- 
tifying objects of nature. By its transparancy and 



20 THE SYSTEM OF (J RACE 

its association with whatever is pure and luxuriant, 
it excites the most agreeable sensations. Besides, 
the lulling noise, the graceful curves, and the gentle 
motions which constantly agitate the thoughts with- 
out violently raising them into the region of the sub- 
lime, are principles of beauty which meet in the 
stream and entertain the beholder with a variety of 
delights as it flows in its meandering course through 
the country. Water, also, enlivens and beautifies the 
sceneries of nature. It imparts a glow of freshness 
to vegetation; it bespangles objects with dew-drops 
which, like diamonds, reflect a variety of the most 
cheering colors ; and it even beautifies the most un- 
sightly appearances b}^ surrounding them with gay 
sceneries which soften down their rudeness and tinge 
them with the rich coloring of the landscape. Thus 
lakes and rivers modify the ruggedness of towering 
rocks which, in their own solitariness, excite only 
feelings of the sublime, by blending them with green 
fields and shady groves. Then these rocks, by a 
reflection of their borrowed graces, shade and varie- 
gate the whole scenery, thus increasing the delightful 
effect produced in the fancy. The most beautiful of 
all nature's rocks was the one smitten in the wilder- 
ness. Its ruggedness was relieved by the copious 
stream of water it poured forth in a dry region for 
the relief of a famishing populace. Even the pyramids 
of Egypt, which strike the mind with only the sub- 
limity of ancient folly, and are attended with as little 
refreshment in the imagination as they are in their 
own sterile desert, would appear as most pleasant and 
entertaining shows of architecture, if, surrounded by 



made available. 21 



01111x0111110' streams instead of burning sands, their 
rude magnificence wore mellowed down with the 
cheerful glow of wild flowers, pomegranite orchards 
and forests of sycamore waving in full bloom. The 
pleasant springs and purling streams, more than any- 
thing else, give an enchantment to those scenes of 
early life at which our fancies linger in delight, 
frequently, when a bo} r , sat alone on the banks of a 
familiar stream. In those solitaiy moments, while 
listening to no other music but the babbling of the 
water beneath and the occasional chirping of birds in 
the trees, I held sweet communion with nature, and 
my memory reverts to those scenes of quietude with 
a melanchoty pleasure. The youth of Gray's immor- 
tal elegy felt the power of this enchantment : 

' ' There at the foot of yonder nodding beach, 
That wreathes its old fantastic roots so high, 

His listless length, at noontide, would he stretch, 
And pore upon the brook that babbles by." 

It was his poring "upon the brook that babbled 
by," rather than his stretching "his listless length" 
"at the foot of yonder nodding beach," that enabled 
oar polished author to paint this most beautiful pic- 
ture of fancy. 

" There is a river, the streams whereof shall make 
glad the city of God." An allusion is here made to 
the waters of Siloam, which, though of no great depth 
or breadth, were sufficient to supply Jerusalem with 
refreshment. The psalmist, however, in penning this 
beautiful passage, had a more cheering blessing in 
view. 



THE S VST KM OF GRACE 



The system of grace is the river which, in its special 
relation to the church, flows out in streams of promises 
to gladden the hearts of believers in the midst of 
dark and discouraging seasons. What is more beau- 
tiful and picturesque than the metaphors under which 
David expresses his abiding confidence in the Shep- 
herd of the Universe. " He maketh me to lie down 
in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still 
waters." 

In its more general relation to the world, this^river 
flows out in streams of divine ordinances to beautify 
the moral face of the world. As it promotes civiliza- 
tion and 'enterprise, Christianity spreads a cheering 
influence over even the natural 'face of the earth. 
Under the resistless march of civilization, the sombre 
forests and pestilential swamps are changed into cul- 
tivated fields ; the savage huts give place to buildings 
of architectural taste, ornamented with surrounding 
flowers, gardens and orchards; and even the rude 
savage himself, whose mind is as uncultivated as the 
forests through which he roams, is adorned with in- 
tellectual refinement and enabled to enter into the 
customs of his more highly educated brethren. But 
the system of grace especially gladdens the moral 
face of the world. In its moral aspect there are in 
the world many parched deserts, many barren moun- 
tains, many fruitless wastes and many dismal swamps 
surrounded with the dank, deadly malaria of pagan- 
ism. Still, there are streams of life running through 
this desert waste, producing many green and culti- 
vated spots of grace which, by ever widening and 
ever becoming more numerous, promise us that ulti- 



MADE AVAILABLE. 23 



mately "the wilderness and solitary place shall be 
made glad ; that " the desert shall rejoice and blossom 
as the rose;" and that Eden shall again appear in all 
her beauty and delight. 

The River of Life gladdens the S3'stem of divine 
truth. It is no irreverance to say that the Bible con- 
tains many unpleasant, many dismal, mairy terrifying 
truths. The Bible is a revelation of man as well as 
to man. The repulsive features of a delinquent world 
are copied in it by the pen of inspiration ; and it is an 
evidence of its truth that it paints human life in its 
true living colors. The heroes of romance may be 
dressed in such characters as would indicate that 
thej^ inhabit some fairy-land in which dwell nothing 
but purity and virtue ; but the Bible describes even 
its most illustrious characters with such candor as 
points to sinners as their brethren, and to earth as 
their fatherland. We know not that a written reve- 
lation has been given to the pure inhabitants of other 
worlds. The necessity for such a revelation would 
seem precluded by their privilege of looking directly 
in the face of their Creator. But it is certain that if 
such a revelation were given, it would be more cheer- 
ing than ours. Confined in its details to the history 
of the happy throng for whose improvement it was 
given and to the evolution of the more amiable traits 
of the divine character, it would contain no account 
of a wrecked world, no flood sweeping away its wicked 
inhabitants, no fire and brimstone raining upon its 
abandoned cities, no records stained with crimson, no 
terrifying views of their Creator. A consciousness 
of guilt, and a perception of omnipotent power de- 



24 THE SYSTEM OF GllACE 

pending upon motives that are not known, are the 
sources of that terror with which the inhabitants of 
earth invest their Creator. Conscious of guilt, and 
so lapsed in his moral nature as to be unable to dis- 
cover the benevolent intentions dwelling in the divine 
mind, the sinner beholds with terror an incensed Be- 
ing who holds in his hands all the agencies of destruc- 
tion. But to beings who, conscious of no guilt, can 
look straight into the face of their Creator, and whose 
moral perceptions are so acute as to discern goodness 
as the predominant trait of the divine character, Je- 
hovah would appear in this angelic revelation as a 
most lovely Being. It is evident, then, that a reve- 
lation of sinful man and of an offended God must be 
dismal and terrific. But the river of life brightens up 
the whole scene. Mercy mingles with justice. The 
Gospel throws a cheerfulness around the law. Jesus 
Christ reveals the loveliness of Deity. Streams of 
life sparkle amid truths stern and forbidding; flow 
through the crevice opened by the convulsion of 
man's original apostacy; and spread over the entire 
sacred landscape such a gladness as melts down into 
one glow of associated beauty the ruggedness of the 
most dismal truths, which in their own solitariness, 
rise up in terrific grandeur, like Sinai, around whose 
summit lightnings flash and thunders roll. 

The River of Life beautifies human nature. The 
nature of man shows itself in two sets of faculties, be- 
longing respectively to the mind and the heart. Upon 
the former depends its sublimity ; upon the latter its 
beauty. The intellect ma}^ unfold the deep things of 
creation, may count the stars, and, taking its stand 



MADE AVAILABLE. 25 



upon t he summit of nil visible appearances, may look 
out upon a far-stretching Held of suns and systems 
where we had thought there was nothing but unlim- 
ited and empty space ; hut, unless the heart lays hold 
of the loveliness of God and appropriates the atone- 
ment of Christ in all its cleansing and vivifying in- 
fluences, these intellectual achievements are onhv the 
magnificent pyramids of human nature. Rising tip 
in their own sterile desert, they are no less dismal 
than amazing to the sight of the beholder. The in- 
tellect lost but little of its energy by the fall. It is 
the moral nature that has been ruined ; it is the heart 
that has been transformed into a barren and dreary 
desert. In classic literature w^e behold w T onderful 
displays of intellectual energy; but, associated as 
they are, with defective morals, unsettled and cheer- 
less notions of Deity, and shocking and sensual acts 
of devotion, they wear the melancholy grandeur of 
immense tow^ers standing in a sombre wilderness des- 
titute of all life and beauty. Grace, and not genius, 
can impart a moral beauty to man. The River of 
Life streaming into the heart, purling among the 
affections, shining out in Christian graces and vivi- 
fying the tender plants of virtue, alone can spread a 
cheerfulness over human nature. Though essentially 
rough parts cling to man which divine influence will 
not at present loosen and dissolve, still, blended with 
imparted and cultivated graces, they shade and varie- 
gate, rather than deform this scenery of moral beauty. 
Thus "the hidden man of the heart" is adorned with 
an incorruptible ornament, " even a meek and quiet 
spirit, which is, in the sight of God, of great price.' 1 



20 THE SYSTEM OF (ill ACE 



The River of Life even beautifies th$ outwardman. 

It awakens benevolent feelings, and imparts a grace 
to his manners, which adorns his social intercourses. 
It so purifies his conscience, so quiets the turbulency 
of his heart, and so inspires him with the hope of 
present support and future felicity as to impart to his 
countenance an expression of candor, and peace, and 
joy. This beauty defies the infirmities of age. The 
landscape may exhibit trees riven Ivy lightning, fences 
scattered by the storm, and roofless buildings sinking 
to the ground, which once resounded with a merri- 
ment now hushed in the tomb ; still it retains amid 
these ruins a constant beauty, if there be running 
through it a stream of w^ater refreshing w^ild flowers 
which do not disdain to bloom amid the desolations 
of time's withering touch. So the Christian retains 
a tranquil beauty which beams amid wrinkles, and is 
undiminished while the graces of the body, one after 
another, are fading 'away. Even when the soul, thus 
cleansed, thus calmed, and thus inspired, has been 
separated from its earthly tabernacle, an impress of 
its cheerfulness is left upon the marble countenance 
as it lies cold in the coffin. 

Water is a free gift of Providence. It is certainly 
an evidence of God's impartial benevolence that, 
whatever may be the disadvantages of poverty, his 
most valuable gifts are bestowed upon us without 
money or price. Poverty is a calamity more fanciful 
than real. It is a calamity to the man who can see 
no other value than that which money can purchase ; 
but, it is only a slight annoyance to the man who ap- 
preciates the higher blessings which money cannot 



MADE AVAILAB] 27 



purchase. The distinction between wealth and pov- 
erty is well marked in relation to minor blessings ; 
but this distinction grows fainter and finally disap- 
pears, as the mind rises higher and higher in its con- 
ceptions, until a point of observation is reached where 
it may survey the most valuable gifts which Provi- 
dence bestows alike upon the rich and the 'poor. In 
this region, so high above the possibility of specula- 
tion, all are eqnalty blessed. It is a singular truth 
that many blessings so valuable as to lie beyond the 
reach of money fall within the reach of those who 
have no mone3 T . Poverty, then, is a denial of the 
minor, not of the greater gifts of Providence. In re- 
lation to our present existence nothing is more valu- 
able than the air we breathe, the water we drink, and 
the rays which stream upon us from the sun. We 
cannot live without them, while we may live in com- 
parative ease without wealth. But money cannot la} r 
hold oi them, cannot monopolize them, cannot retail 
them out by the gallon or cubic foot at extortionary 
prices. They are so valuable that the poor may enjo} r 
them in common with the rich. We can imagine a 
man in such a condition that he would give all he is 
worth for a cup of water; but we cannot imagine a 
man in such poverty that he could not afford the 
luxuries of the flowing stream. Divine grace, like 
water, is a blessing too valuable to be purchased by 
nione3\ It, therefore, falls within the reach of the 
poor. u Whosoever will, may come, and take the water 
of life freely." We must not, however, understand 
the freeness of salvation in the sense in which it is 
held by many miserly professors who congratulate 



28 THE SYSTEM OF GRACE 

themselves upon the possession of a religion that costs 
them nothing. We once heard of a minister who was 
interrupted in his discourse in such a way as gave 
him an unexpected opportunity to check a false in- 
ference. While he was dwelling in eloquent terms 
upon the freeness of salvation, one of his members, 
who was more impressed with the freeness of grace 
than with its tendency to awaken charitable emotions, 
shouted out: " Glory to God for a free salvation. I 
have had religion for twenty years, and it never cost 
me a dollar." Instantly the minister stopped; then 
his brows began to knit; then his recently serene 
countenance began to be overclouded with a gather- 
ing storm of righteous indignation; then bursted 
forth the thunder-bolt — "May the Lord have mercy 
upon }^our poor stingy soul." This, we hope, killed 
the vain presumption of the miser. It is true, water 
is free ; but the water works and pipes used to con- 
V3 # v it to the inhabitants of the town cost something 
to be kept in repair. In like manner, the Home and 
Foreign Mission works and the many appliances em- 
ployed to convey salvation, in itself free, to the mul- 
titudes famishing in the moral deserts of the world, 
are attended with considerable expense. 0, can we 
not convince you, that the money you spend in the 
cause of Christ, is not to purchase heaven, but to ex- 
tend the privileges of a free salvation to others ? Here 
let me guard you against two essentially fatal ex- 
tremes. 0, be careful that you are not numbered 
among those who would make salvation a commodity 
for the market, who would claim a superior place in 
heaven for a superior price paid on earth, and who 



MADE AVAILABLE. 20 



would thus transfer to a region of purity and love the 
same moneyed distinction under which many in 
society are groaning. Be equally careful that you 
are not numbered among those who extol the freeness 
of grace, rather than its power to destroy the selfis i- 
ness of our natures, and who have one hand tightly 
clasped upon the purse and the other raised to heaven 
while they shout, " Glory to God for a salvation that 
never cost me a dollar." 

Water is an inexhaustible element of nature. There 
is now as much water in Jacob's well as there was 
when our blessed Saviour sat upon it, while he rested 
his body and at the same time relieved his soul of its 
solicitude for the salvation of Samaria ; and there was 
as much then as there had been immediately after it 
had been opened in the valley of Sechem. There is 
now as much water rolling down the Susquehanna as 
there was when the foot-prints of the savage could be 
traced in the sands which covered its wild shores. 
In like manner, the stream bursting from the smitten 
rock, flowing down the slope of calvary, and forming 
the River of Life, glides through the world as copi- 
ously as ever, though it has cheered the souls and 
cleansed the robes of millions rejoicing in heaven. 
Indeed, like the widow's cruse of oil, it increases as 
you take from it. "Whosoever drinketh of the water 
that I shall give him shall never thirst ; but the water 
that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water 
springing up into everlasting life." When you drink 
of this water, you do more than assauge, from an ex- 
ternal source, a thirst that will again return in all its 
fearful agonies. You take in a principle of grace that 



30 THE SYSTEM OF GRACE 

becomes permanently located in your heart, and that 
so assimilates itself with your moral nature as to be 
"in jow a well of water " — a never-failing source of 
spiritual refreshment — a fountain, ever flowing and 
ever seeking new channels to other hearts in which 
other fountains are opened, whence others, and 
still others, are opened. Then these individual 
rivulets bursting from millions of hearts flow back 
into the River of Life, causing it to swell, to flow on 
with an increased impetus, and to speed the glorious 
era when it shall spread life and cheerfulness and 
beauty over the earth as the waters cover the great 
deep. 

Such, then, is the sj^stem of grace made available 
by the word, come. Such is its design, its beginning, 
its growth, and its completion. Such is its applica- 
tion as a most efficient agency in cleansing, refresh- 
ing and restoring the moral nature of man. Such is 
its beautifying influence over the church, over the 
entire world, over the system of divine revelation and 
over the inner and outer man. Such is its freeness 
and its constant and ever increasing copiousness. One 
would suppose that such a combination of everything 
essential to life and happiness, flowing from the benev- 
olence of God, could not fail to arrest universal atten- 
tion; that the soul which so frequently experienced 
eveiy system of philosophy and every other form of 
religion to be "a dry and thirsty land where no water 
is," could not refuse to drink of that gracious stream 
which sparkles before our eyes. 0, why will you lie 
down in your "filth when there is water to cleanse 
you? Why will you sutler all the pains of a perpet- 



m u>l w ajlab] :;l 



ual thirst when a pure limpid stream Hows at your 
feet? Why will you allow a loathesome and fatal 
disease to carry you into perdition, when yon have 
only to step into the pool and be healed? Why will 
you remain in all your ugliness, when grace holds be- 
fore you a cosmetic that will preserve in your soul 
all the bloom of youth in defiance of all the ravages 
of time and all the worms which infest the tomb? 
Have you no money ? The value of grace is too high 
to be reached by money. It rises even so high as to 
fall within the region of poverty. Why then will you 
refuse it? But we may describe the excellencies oi 
the River of Life ; we ma}', then, ask wh}', and why, 
and why ! The flint}' rock will just as readily answer. 
Descriptions and appeals will not awaken the dead. 
The messengers whose office it is to invite } t ou must 
be accompanied with a power that will arouse you. 
This, as we will show in our next discourse, the Spirit 
does when he says, Come. 



THE MESSENGERS WHOSE OFFICE IS TO SAY, COME. 



THE SPIRIT'S CALL, 



This s}^stem of grace, so copious and so free; so 
competent to cleanse, revive and beautify the moral 
nature of man, is made available by the word, come. 
In nature there is a great deal of concealed value. 
There are many fountains unproclaimed and un- 
visited, whose virtues are wasted in the solitude of 
the valley. The region of hidden treasures contains 
richer mines of wealth than any yet discovered. 

" Full many a gem of purest ray serene, 
The dark, unfathomed eaves of ocean bear ; 

Full many a flower is born to blush unseen, 
And waste its sweetness in the desert air." 

Many a " mute and inglorious" genius would shine 
as brightly, if brought out, as any whose valor fills 
the world with praise, or whose eloquence " commands 
the applause of listening senates." There is a human 
worth too heavy, it would seem, to be thrown to the 
surface from the depth of its obscurity by the po- 
litical ebullitions that bring so much lighter material 
into notoriety. Brass is lighter than gold ; and this 
lighter metal, rather than the heavier, is often seen 
in those who have forced themselves into public 
notice. That so much worth should remain hidden 
and unavailable in this world, is one of the mysteries 

(33) 



34 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE, 

eternity must reveal. So it is in nature ; but it is 
not so in grace. Grace transcends nature in this, as 
well as in other respects, that its richest treasures are 
revealed to the world. There are no hidden streams 
of life running to waste, no unexplored mines of 
wealth lying useless in the plan of salvation. It is 
true, there are mysteries in this plan. All the wealth 
of the divine attributes are thrown into it, and its 
exploration will afford us delightful employment in 
eternity. Its mysteries, however, belong to the di- 
vine counsels, in relation to which we may devoutly 
exclaim : u 0, the depths of the riches both of the 
wisdom and knowledge of God ! How unsearchable 
are his judgments, and his ways past finding out. 
For who hath known the mind of the Lord ? or who 
hath been his counsellor? 77 But there is nothing in 
the system of salvation really valuable in relation to 
the well-being of man that has not been made avail- 
able. The same divine goodness that opened a foun- 
tain of salvation, also made arrangements to have it 
brought to the notice of a polluted, famishing and 
sin-sick world, by commissioning divine and human 
agents to say, "come 77 — "take the water of life 
freely. 77 This brings us to notice — 

II. The messengers whose office it is to say, come. 
"And the Spirit and the Bride say, come. And let 
him that heareth say, come. 77 In this discourse we 
will discuss the necessity, the nature and the method 
of the Spirit 7 s call. 

1. "The Spirit says, come. 77 This welcome voice 
of the Spirit makes Christianity an available and an 



the spirit's call. 35 



ever-expanding blessing to the world. Without it 
the atonement of Christ would have been a hidden 
treasure. Owing to the obscurity of our Saviour's 
birth, the limited sphere of his influence, the short 
duration of his official career, the humble and illiter- 
ate character of his associates, the fewness of his fol- 
lowers — many of whom followed him for the loaves 
and fishes, and at the first appearance of difficulties 
forsook him — and the unsettled dispositions, together 
with the defective spiritual training of those who 
professed to love him, the cause for which he j)Oured 
out his precious blood would have remained in con- 
cealment after his ascension, had it been left to the 
management of mere human dexterit}\ Then Jacob 
would have remained small ; then the stone, which 
was to break into pieces Nebuchadnezzar's image, 
never would have grown into a mountain ; then the 
fountain of life would have run to waste amid the 
hills and the valleys of Judea. It would have run 
to waste, not for the want of intrinsic value, but for 
the want of a divine energy to bring into contact with 
its saving truths souls thirsting for the water of life. 
Had Christianity been left, like some system of 
philosophy, to be advanced by the ordinary faculties 
of the mind, it never would have obtained the hold 
which it now has upon the world. Indeed, had its 
success been made a question of mere mental power, 
it would have obtained no hold at all, as the most 
refined intellects of that day were arrayed against its 
claims. " The world by wisdom knew not God, 77 nor 
ever will, by the ordinary powers of conception, 
know him in the grand scheme of redemption, This 



36 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

scheme lies too high for the unaided grasp of the 
most brilliant intellect. Besides, like the morbid 
condition of the rabid animal which is thrown into 
convulsions at the sight of water, there is an obstinate 
state of depravity which makes the Fountain of Life 
repulsive to the human heart. This deep-rooted an- 
tipathy in man must in some way be overcome ; the 
film that darkens his moral perceptions, must, in some 
way, be penetrated ; his inward pollution, want and 
malady, must, in some way, be discovered to his soul ; 
a conviction of the truth and efficacy of the atone- 
ment to meet the requirements of his fallen nature, 
must, in some way, be produced, before the Gospel 
can be brought to his favorable notice and secure his 
unshaken confidence. This, certainly, is a work too 
great for human talent. How can talent lodge in the 
soul a truth against which all its inward feelings are 
in a state of revolt ? 

The system of grace, divine in its origin, divine in 
its purifying effect, must also be divine in the agency 
by which it is brought to the notice and the relief of 
perishing sinners. Now, as ever, does this hold true. 
Now, as ever, is apparent the futility of every effort 
to awaken a religious interest by the exercise of those 
ordinary powers by w^hich secular enterprises are 
advanced. My dear brethren, are you convinced of 
this truth? Are you convinced that a power in- 
finitely more potent than the talent of your minister 
is necessary to lead perishing souls to the water of 
life ? Do you pray that this power may impart an 
unction to every sermon, a conviction to every hearer 
pf his spiritual destitution and of the availability of 



37 



the plan of salvation ? Our blessed Saviour prayed 
for this power. He knew that after he would leave 
the world, his cause would perish if left to the man- 
agement of the unaided powers of man ; hence, he 
prayed the Father to send another Comforter to de- 
fend and superintend the interests of his cause until 
his second coming. Shall we blasphemously presume 
that in his estimate of human incompetency he over- 
looked us, and that we can successfully carry on this 
cause without prayer? 0, Holy Spirit, breathe into 
us a spirit of earnest supplication ! 

The Comforter given to the world and the Church 
in answer to the intercession of Jesus, is the Holy 
Spirit. When he says, come, then the Fountain of 
Life can no longer remain a hidden blessing. Then, 
" in the wilderness, shall waters break out, and streams 
in the desert. And the parched ground shall become 
a pool, and the thirsty land springs of water: in the 
habitation of dragons, where each lay, shall be grass 
with reeds and rushes. " When he says come, then 
" the eyes of the blind shall be opened and the ears 
of the deaf shall be unstopped. Then shall the lame 
man leap as an hart, and the tongue of the dumb 
sing." When he says come, sinners are made sen- 
sible of their defilement and of the fatality resting 
upon their souls ; the current of their desires is 
changed ; their will receives a new and gracious bias ; 
they arise, and are seen coming, coming, coming, in 
deep contrition to the Fountain of Life opened in the 
bleeding wounds of our Saviour. 

Thus we see the comprehensiveness of the word 
come, when pronounced by the Spirit. It includes 



38 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

both the general and special calls of grace. . In the 
former is implied his influence in all those missionary 
movements relating to the evangelization of the 
world. In the latter is implied that influence of the 
word which marks out an individual in an assembled 
multitude, and makes him the subject of special im- 
pressions resulting in the renewal of his moral nature. 

2. Without dwelling at present upon those spiritual 
movements relating to the general diffusion of the" 
Gospel, we will here bestow a few remarks upon the 
nature of the Spirit's operations in what is called an 
effectual call of grace. In this effectual call, the 
word come, as pronounced by the Spirit, is accom- 
panied with a quickening and persuasive power, en- 
abling the sinner to arise and go to the fountain of 
living waters. 

Such is the terrible depravity of human nature that 
the sinner wants both power and inclination to par- 
take of the water of life. Like the corpse, cold, stiff 
and lifeless, he is insensible to the wounds that 
sting, the joys that thrill, the motives that stir, and 
the hopes that animate those who are alive to their 
eternal welfare. Come may be sounded in his ears 
like a mighty roll of thunder, and it will leave him as 
listless as before, unless it can awaken the dead. But 
in addition to this negative incompetency resting 
upon his soul, he has a positive disrelish for the water 
of life;. and to bring him into those spiritual enjoy- 
ments which are nauseating to his depraved taste, 
would increase rather than diminish his misery. How 
can the heart full of malice, how can the tongue 
cankered with slander, taste delight in a region of 



THE spirit's call. 39 



purity and love? 0, charge not your Maker with 
cruelty by denying } r ou an entrance into Heaven, 
when your whole soul is thirsting for gratifications that 
are "earthly, sensual, devliish!" Yiew it rather as 
an indication of divine benevolence in granting you a 
condition the most congenial to your depraved natures. 
Then the Spirit must b} r some mysterious influence 
remove this negative and this positive incompetency. 
He must in some way arouse the sinner from his 
deathly stupor and change the current of his desires, 
before he can go, or even can have an inclination to 
go, to the fountain of life. How does he do this ? 

Our Saviour promises that when the Comforter is 
"come, he will reprove [or convince, as it is in the 
margin] the world of sin and of righteousness." 
Again he says, "He shall glorify me; for he shall 
receive of mine, and shall show it unto you." These 
expressions indicate the relation of the Holy Spirit 
to the system of grace as the awakening and moving- 
power that leads the sinner to repentance and into 
the fold of God. The Spirit convinces him of sin — 
of the odious, the fatal, the unsatisfying nature of 
sin, thus arousing his apprehensions, and creating 
within him a desire to be purified, refreshed and 
saved. This, certainly, is a gracious work of the 
Spirit. To see ourselves, to feel our wants, and to 
crave for gratifications pure and permanent, is the 
first step to happiness. But without hope, it is a step 
into misery — without Christ, it is a plunge into per- 
dition. What else can that death be which the lost 
are ever vainly seeking, but a dormancy of those 
faculties which forever call up into their minds lost 



40 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

privileges, and an insensibility of that conscience 
which is forever lashing them? To see clanger and 
not a refuge ; to feel the pains of thirst and not the 
hope of quenching it, is a most fearful condition. 
But the awakened sinner is not left to quake with 
fear, to burn with thirst, in this wilderness. He is 
not left to grope in darkness, to tear through brambles, 
and to wade through swamps in search of happiness 
without a guide, save the suggestions of unassisted 
reason, which, like the glimmers of the ignis-fatuus, 
bewilder and mislead his inquiring soul. He hears a 
voice ringing through the darkness. The Spirit 
again says, come — this time not to awaken his slum- 
bering faculties, but to guide his wandering feet to 
the Fountain of Life. The Spirit is now leading him 
to Christ by convincing him of righteousness. That 
is, the Spirit produces in his heart such a conviction 
that Christ was no deceiver, that he was unjustly put 
to death for an imposter, as carries with it a hearty 
acknowledgment of the righteousness of his character 
and justness of his pretensions. But the sinner may 
be brought to face Christ, to acknowledge his in- 
tegrity, and to admire his wisdom and benevolence, 
still he may know nothing of the efficacy of his blood. 
There are systems of theology which admire Christ 
simply as an illustrious human reformer, whose doc- 
trines display more wisdom and more practical 
utilit}^ than any ever published to the world, and 
whose sufferings, faced with the heroism of a martyr, 
possess the single merit of attesting the sincerity of 
his intentions, while they exclude what alone can 
gratify the soul under condemnation — the sacrificial 



THE SPIRIT'S CALL. 41 



character of bis death. The sinner, who was awak- 
ened and then led to Christ by the Spirit's call, is 
now invited to drink of salvation. The Spirit now 
takes the things of Christ and shows them to him. 
He shows him the doctrine of the atonement with all 
its attendant blessings, and so convinces him of its 
complete adaptation to his moral condition, as to 
awaken confidence in his Redeemer's power to save. 
Thus aroused, thus led and thus persuaded, he drinks 
and never thirsts again. In this way the sinner is 
brought to a saving knowledge of the system of 
grace by the Spirit when he effectually says, come. 
O, there is a progressive influence attending this 
word, come. The Spirit says, come, and the sinner, 
like Lazarus, emerges from the sepulchre of death. 
He says, come, and "as the hart panteth after the 
water brooks, so his soul thirsteth for the living God." 
He says, come, and he stands gazing admiringly on 
the River of Life clear as crystal proceeding out of 
the throne of God and of the Lamb. Again he says, 
come, and his soul is imbibing the purest enjoyments 
from the blissful stream. He sleeps, he wakes, he 
thirsts, he drinks. In this work of the Spirit there is 
not the least suspension of the exercise of the will. 
The water of life for which he thirsts, and to which 
he is brought, and of whose efficacy he is convinced, 
he is at liberty to accept or refuse ; but such is the 
gracious influence under which even his will is 
brought, that in all the freedom of a responsible 
agent he goes to the fountain of life. 

The early history of Christianity affords us a strik- 
ing illustration of the Spirit's influence in inviting 



42 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

the attention of a perishing world to this system of 
grace. As has already been stated, the unaided 
powers of man are incompetent to give it that pub- 
licity which, as a remedial system, it demands. 
Divine in its nature, it must be divine in the power 
of its promulgation. From its conception until its 
ultimate triumph, it must not be taken out of the 
hands of the triune God. The Father, after having 
devised the plan of salvation, sent his Son into the 
woild to put it into execution. The Son, after having 
finished it, sent the Holy Spirit to maintain it amid 
all opposition and to make it an available blessing to 
the human famity. After the Son ascended the Spirit 
descended. After the one went to Heaven, the other 
came to earth and at once instituted the spiritual 
dispensation. Thus commissioned, he immediately 
enters upon his gracious work, and the inauguration 
of his dispensation is attended with a most remark- 
able instance of both his general and his special calls 
to sinners. By a miraculous gift of tongues, he pub- 
lished the Gospel to the representatives of all the 
nations of the then known world. Come, come, come, 
was sounded in every language, and every one as- 
sembled on that occasion could carry the story of the 
cross home to his own kindred and country. While 
thus extending a general call to all, he was also ex- 
tending an effectual call to some. He was convincing 
them of sin by sending home to their consciences the 
charge of murdering the blessed Jesus. He was con- 
vincing them of righteousness by lodging in their 
breasts a conviction of the resurrection of him whom 
they crucified, He was showing them the things of 



THE spirit' s call. 43 



Christ — the doctrines adapted to their moral neces- 
sities — which secured their confidence and of which 
they made a public profession by being baptized in 
the name of Jesus Christ. In this personal, this 
effectual way, about three thousand souls heard the 
Spirit say, come, on this memorable occasion. This 
gracious work, so auspiciously commenced, was 
carried on, "and the Lord added to the church daily 
such as should be saved." 

We fear there is a tendency to deprive this remark- 
able event of its practical bearing, and to consider it 
as a special divine interposition in behalf of Christi- 
anity in a peculiar emergency, rather than the com- 
mencement of a continuous influence which, like the 
opening of a river, shall flow on through all succeed- 
ing time. Christianity, yet weak in educational as 
well as in social and numerical resources, was brought 
to a crisis. It had to storm the kingdom of darkness 
before its efficacy could be known to the world ; it 
had to force asunder the prejudice of the Jews and 
superstition of the pagans, venerable in age and 
strong in literature, before it could lay hold of the 
affections ; and many, we fear, think that the out- 
pouring of the Holy Spirit was merely to meet this 
emergency and to supply the place of the wealth, 
talent and literature the church can now command 
and control to its own advantage. Hence there is a 
growing tendency to cringe before men of wealth and 
culture, while, at the same time, there is less agonizing 
prayer for divine influence. Be not deceived, breth- 
ren, by the alluring tendencies of the age. The pub- 
lication of the Gospel and the conversion of sinners 



44 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

in- the nineteenth century depend upon an energy as 
superhuman as was the gift of tongues on the day of 
Pentecost. Should the Spirit retire froni his mission 
and hand over to the unaided powers of man the 
work of disseminating divine truth and of pressing it 
home to the conscience, the borders of Christianity 
would soon shrink, and darkness would soon cover 
the face of the earth. If you wish a revival in your 
midst you must not go to genius ; you must, like the 
early disciples, go into your upper chambers, and 
there continue in prayer and supplication. 

From all that has been said in relation to the 
necessity of the Spirit's influence, we gather an inti- 
mation of a fearful danger continually staring in the 
face of the incorrigible sinner. The Spirit will not 
always say, come. He may be provoked by a per- 
sistent rebellion to leave the sinner forever. 0, then, 
he will have fastened upon the soul which he so fre- 
quently invited an irreversible doom. It is true, 
Jesus still stands, as he did on the last, the great day 
of the feast, and cries, "If any man thirst let him 
come unto me and drink." But the difficulty with 
this abandoned soul is not that he has committed an 
inexpiable offense — there is virtue in the Fountain 
of Life that will cleanse sins of the deepest d}^e — but 
that he has neither power nor inclination to go to this 
fountain, and that he has driven off forever the Spirit 
whose office is to arouse his faculties and excite his 
desires. This is the unpardonable sin. It is unpar- 
donable because it cannot be brought to the fountain 
opened for sin and uncleanness. O, sinner, beware, 
beware, beware, how you trifle, with the Spirit that 
says, come. 



THE spirit's call. 45 



3. We will now discuss the method of the Spirit's 
call in the way of answering two prominent objections. 
It is objected^ first, that the doctrine of the Spirit's 
effectual call gives room for religious fanaticism; 
and, secondly, that it sets aside human agency in the 
process of regeneration. 

The first objection may be stated thus: "If the 
ordinary powers of man are unable to discover the 
malady of our fallen natures and its appropriate 
remedy ; and if the Spirit, by his immediate influ- 
ence, must reprove sin, create faith in Christ and 
confidence in the terms of salvation, then the word of 
God, adapted to our ordinary perceptions, must be set 
aside in this work of grace; and then ignorance, 
associated with a belief in spiritual inspiration — the 
two elements of fanaticism — would give full reins to 
a religious enthusiasm that would furnish instances 
without number of visions, trances, and revelations 
of things seen in the future or other world." This 
conclusion would, indeed, be legitimate if the doctrine 
of the Spirit's agency implies that he acts independ- 
ently of the written word and of our mental consti- 
tution in bringing souls to taste of the sweet comforts 
of grace. But certainly there is nothing in this doc- 
trine to indicate such a mode of operation. The 
province of the Spirit is to reveal a terrific majesty 
and a divine excellenc}^ inside and not outside of the 
law and the gospel. In a former dispensation, it is 
true, he threw such an effulgence of light into the 
souls of holy men of God as enabled them to see, as 
it were, through a telescope, in the far-stretching 
landscape of futurity,, this fountain of life yet hid in 



46 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

the mind of Deity. Then, however, his operations 
were inspirations of truth. Then his revelations 
were prophetical. But now, since the system of grace 
has been changed from a prospective to an historical 
blessing, his province is not to reveal new truths, but 
to exhibit in those already revealed a divine power 
and excellency not otherwise known. This province 
is implied in the word, come. The Spirit says, come. 
But to what are we invited ? To the Fountain of 
Life. Very true ; but where is the Fountain of Life ? 
Is it something undetermined as to character and 
location ? Is it not the very doctrine of grace estab- 
lished by Christ and revealed in the Gospel? Then 
it is to an excellency within and not without the 
Gospel that the Spirit invites attention in his effectual 
call to sinners. He may excite a religious enthusiasm, 
it is true, but it is an intelligent enthusiasm restricted 
to the written word. He convinces of sin, but it is 
by the word of God, which, the apostle tells us, is 
the " sword of the spirit." He further says "that the 
word of God is quick and powerful, and sharper than 
any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing 
asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and mar- 
row, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of 
the heart." He gives the Word force, acuteness and 
penetration, and employs it to lay open the heart 
that its inward corruption may be fully exposed. *He 
further produces faith in Christ and confidence in 
his atonement by the Word. Our blessed Saviour in- 
dicates this peculiar operation of the Spirit by saying, 
" he shall receive of mine, and shall show it unto you." 
What shall he show unto you? y Not strange things 



47 



in visions. These arise rather from a disordered 
imagination than from the Spirit's influence. But he 
shall show you an excellency in the Gospel that you 
will be unable to account for on any other principle 
than that he who established it is divine. He dwells 
in the Word ; and but little of his influence is felt in 
the heart when little of divine truth is lodged in the 
mind. We are sanctified by the truth, not without 
the truth. Some persons are more emotional than 
intelligent, and claim special spiritual influence ; but 
they despise religious literature, and often show a 
want of culture by their deviations from truth and 
the rude manner in which they assail the mental ap- 
plication of less pretentious Christians whose religious 
characters are of a finer texture. We denounce their 
claims as false and unfounded. Their enthusiasm is 
noise without power — it is thunder without lightning. 
But still, it may be insisted upon that the doctrine 
of the Spirit's revelation encourages virtually, if not 
expressly, a visionary extravagance under the name 
of inspiration. Or, in more definite terms, this objec- 
tion may be stated thus: " If man's ordinary faculties 
are unable to comprehend the word, then to him it is 
a sealed book ; then the Spirit's revelations of things 
which he is unable to discover in it, would, to him, 
be without written authority; and then, discerning 
no difference between these revelations and direct 
inspirations, he would ever be liable to run into all 
the licentiousness of religious fanaticism." But the 
Spirit does not act independently of our mental con- 
stitutions. Confined in his operations to the Gospel, 
he does not afford the heart a sense of its excellency 



48 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 



until its subject-matter is brought into the mind. 
The mind obtains the subject-matter of ths Gospel 
by the same mental exercise which secures an under- 
standing of anything else. Hence the ordinary exer- 
cise of the faculties is necessary to a spiritual illu- 
mination of the heart. But we must make a dis- 
tinction between a necessary and an adequate employ- 
ment of our powers. The province of reason is to 
perceive a speculative knowledge of the word. In 
this its exercise is necessary. But it could as easily 
perceive the sweetness of honey as the beauty and 
loveliness of the Word without the illumination of 
the Spirit. It is necessary to open the eyes to have 
a sense of the loveliness of a flower. But the mere 
opening of the eyes cannot furnish this sense. The 
organ of sight in nature and in function is the same 
in every person. But every person does not perceive 
the beauty of a flower. The eye opens that a notion 
of its organic form may enter the mind. This notion 
is common to all who can see. Its loveliness, how- 
ever, must be perceived by the faculty of taste which 
is not common to all in a state of culture and refine- 
ment. Now substitute for the eyes the ordinary 
faculties of the mind, for the organic form of the 
flower the subject-matter of the Gospel, and for the 
taste developed by culture the moral sense awakened 
b}^ the Spirit, and^then you will see the analogy; then 
you will see how the ordinary powers of the mind are 
necessary and at the same time inadequate to a dis- 
covery of the beauties of divine truth. The Spirit, 
however, communicates himself to the soul; he in- 
vigorates those faculties yet active, and restores 



THE spirit's call. 49 



those lapsed by the fall; and he then exerts himself 
in the very exercise of these faculties in imparting 
to the subject of his influence a sense of the excel- 
lency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus our Lord. 
These faculties are set agoing as if everything de- 
pended upon their exertion ; but it is the Spirit actin'g 
in them as their vital principle that leads them to a 
discovery of the excellency of the Gospel of Christ. 
This reconciles human responsibility with divine 
grace. " Work out your own salvation with fear and 
trembling." Here we are taught that you must em- 
ploy your powers just as diligently as you would in 
securing any other result. But the exertion of your 
faculties, though necessary, is not sufficient to secure 
as a result of their efforts the salvation of your souls. 
" For it is God that worketh in you both to will and 
to do of his good pleasure." Here we are taught 
that God works when }^ou work — that he exerts him- 
self in the necessar}^ but inadequate employment of 
your powers — and that therefore your sufficiency is 
of him, and 3'our salvation of grace. Then, the 
Spirit's operations in illuminating our souls with 
saving truth are rational, though the power he im- 
parts to our inadequate faculties is supernatural. We 
do not deem it necessary to furnish here more than 
two illustrations of his method of communications, 
as, indeed, they are the same we would employ in 
explaining his influence in relation to all the other 
vital doctrines of revelation. 

We must have a knowledge of the law before we 
can feel a stirring conviction of sin leading to a 
reformation of life. Our ordinary powers can lodge 



50 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

in the mind this knowledge, but the}^ cannot produce 
in the heart this conviction. A man, by mere mental 
effort, may perceive the law in all its relations ; he 
may sanction its just and inflexible requirements; 
and he may by the operations of his conscience act- 
ing without any special light, obtain intimations of 
his moral delinquency, and yet he may feel but little 
alarm. The natural voice of both reason and con- 
science may be stifled by the turbulency of depraved 
passions. He may know that this law was received 
from the mouth of Jehovah himself, who spoke out 
of the blackness and darkness and tempest, out of 
the thunderings and lightnings of Sinai; he may 
know that there is a divinity stamped upon every 
word of its awful declarations, and yet he may feel 
none of its terrific majesty. But if the Spirit exert 
himself in his reason and conscience and so awaken 
his moral sensibilities that he may feel how near, how 
awful, how potent and how stern in his demands is 
Jehovah, then he will "exceedingly fear and quake." 
If the Spirit reveal to him the depth of meaning, the 
searching power of the law, then he will be convinced 
of the criminality of even his most hidden thoughts. 
If the Spirit make him, sensible of the holiness and 
loveliness of his Maker blazing amid other attributes 
stamped upon the law, then he will loathe sin and 
thirst for the water of life. 

Faith in Christ as the true Messiah, and confidence 
in the sufficiency of his doctrines are gifts of the 
Spirit. But in bestowing these gifts he acts in unison 
with the active principles of man's mental consti- 
tution. The idiot whose faculties are locked up by 
the hand of nature, and the heathen who has never 



THE SPIRIT'S CALL. 51 

been favored with a single Gospel truth to employ 
his perceptive powers, cannot, under these disabilities, 
become recipients of a saving faith in Christ. u How 
shall they believe in him of whom they have not 
heard?" But mental exertions, though necessary, 
are not adequate to this faith. You may by your 
ordinary powers acquaint yourselves with all the 
facts of the Gospel ; you may by a mere attention to 
the leading traits in the history of Christ, perceive 
the impossibility that a being so meek, so good, so 
pure, so strong in miraculous power, and so far re- 
moved from every appearance of disguise, could be 
an imposter, as he had often been called by the Jews. 
You may even set him up as a model of virtue and 
bend to him an outward conformity of life, and yet 
you may know as little of a saving faith arising from 
a sense of the excellency of the Gospel as the man 
who never heard the name of Jesus. You may in- 
crease your already extensive accomplishments in 
learning by the additional truths of the Bible ; you 
may speak as fluently and as eloquently about the 
deep things in theology as you do about those be- 
longing to any other science, and yet you may know 
nothing about the power of divine truth, nothing 
about its sweetness, nothing about its transforming 
and sanctifying influences. There is a preciousness 
in the Gospel that "flesh and blood " cannot reveal; 
a preciousness that is often u hid from the wise and 
prudent and revealed unto babes;" a preciousness 
that often elevates above the learned philosopher the 
most illiterate person, who could have no faith at all, 
if it depended upon deep biblical researches or long 
processes of logical reasoning. This preciousness 



52 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

the Spirit reveals. He enables the soul to u taste and 
see that the Lord is good" in this divine arrangement. 
O, what a delightful feast is this which the Spirit 
entertains the heart ! u It is sweeter than honey and 
the hone}r-comb." The knowledge upon which saving 
faith is based is not speculative, but is derived from 
tasting "the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.' 7 
A sense of this glory so destroys the prejudices of the 
heart, so fastens the attention of the mind, so en- 
livens and cheers on the faculties in the most delight- 
ful emplojnuent, and sends into the soul such a con- 
viction that a Gospel so lovely cannot be less than 
divine, as to transform immediately the subject of 
the Spirit's influence into a most willing and devout 
believer. In this way the Spirit gives saving faith 
which may be called a faith of the heart, in contra- 
distinction to an intellectual assent to truth. 0, 
could we all only see the Gospel as it is radiated by 
the Spirit, our souls would be filled with such ineffable 
love as would banish every unholy feeling ; and then 
in some future sorrow — perhaps in the chamber of 
death — W3 could cheer our hearts by calling up in 
memory the day when this light bursted into our 
souls, and we could sing — 

"'Twas a heaven below 

My Redeemer to know ; 
And the angels could do nothing more 

Than to fall at his feet 

And the story repeat, 
And the lover of sinners adore. 

" Jesus all the day long 
Was my joy and my song. 
O, that all his salvation might see ! 



the spirit's call. 53 



He hath loved me, I cried, 
He hath suffered and died 
To redeem such a rebel as me." 

In summing up this argument, we again invite at- 
tention to the distinction between a general and 
an effectual call of the Spirit. In a general call he 
imparts to the mind a knowledge of the letter or 
subject-matter of the Gospel, b}^ means which he 
employs and sanctifies for this purpose. In an 
effectual call he imparts to the heart a sense of the 
spirit or excellency of the Gospel, by his direct 
agency. His special call is carried on within that 
which is general. He works like a wheel in a wheel. 
He throws light upon something within and not 
without the mind; and we must look within and not 
without our souls for his revelations which produce 
the light of faith. Therefore, since our ordinary 
powers are able to understand the literal meaning of 
divine truth, the Bible is not set aside as useless by a 
mental incompetency to apprehend in it a hidden 
excellency which the Spirit alone can reveal. And 
further, since, the province of the Spirit is to reveal 
truths only within the Bible, there is no license 
granted an unbridled fanaticism to seek without direct 
spiritual manifestations in rapt trances or strange 
visions. It is not to be understood that the Spirit 
never takes advantage of afflicting dispensations to 
press home to our consciences truths before known 
but woefully neglected. Nor is it to be understood 
that he does not sometimes intrude upon our most 
busy moments, when our thoughts are least engaged 
with religious subjects, to admonish us and call up 
into our minds — or "bring to our remembrance" — » 



54 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

truths of the most momentous importance. But in 
his effectual call he always works within the province 
of the Scriptures. We have thus extensively dwelt 
upon the Spirit's effectual call that God, and not man, 
may be seen as the principal actor in the work of 
regeneration. 

But the other objection to the doctrine of the 
Spirit's effectual influences is, that it excludes human 
agency. What? Excludes human agency? Look 
at that grain of wheat! Who made.it? You cer- 
tainly did not. You could as easily make a world as 
a grain of wheat. You could not help to make it. 
You could not make even the delicate wrappers which 
enveloped, protected and nourished it while growing. 
You could not be even a proximate cause of its 
creation. You were not a conductor of atmospheric 
influence. The sun did not shine through you upon 
the field in which it grew. You could not, by your 
efforts, bring rain from heaven to nourish its roots. 
It w r as made by the direct agencies of nature. Is 
human agency excluded in all this ? Will you fold your 
arms, and say, " 0, if nature must do the work, she may 
then make all the wheat she can, and I will have 
nothing to do but feast upon her bounties !" As 
tillers of the ground, you know that while you cannot 
make wheat, you cannot obtain wheat without your 
personal agency. You know you must put your seed 
wheat into the ground, and remove obstructions to 
nature's influences while she is conducting the pro- 
cesses of generation and development, before }^ou can 
reap a fruitful harvest. It is true, nature does the 
work ; and so independently of man's agency does she 
work, that her operations are going on while he is 



THE spirit's call. 55 



sleeping, resting from his toil, or pursuing his jour- 
ney to a distant country. But her work is not a 
miraculous growth of a harvest from nothing. She 
w r orks in a suitably prepared soil, from a germ con- 
taining the principle of vegetation, which, under her 
several influences, swells, and sprouts, and grows, 
and ripens into a luxuriant crop of wheat. She also 
indulges man by furnishing him with soil and the 
seed that must be cast into it. But she will indulge 
him no further. She will not give his fields so violent 
a shaking as will loosen and pulverize their soil. She 
will not arrange to have seed-wheat cast from the 
sun in rays of light or dropped from the clouds in 
showers of rain. Here comes in human agency. The 
farmer must prepare the ground and deposit into it 
the seed nature furnishes him from her former pro- 
ductions. Hence you see that while it is true that 
nature does the work, furnishes the agencies of sun- 
light, atmosphere, showers and refreshing dews, and 
the material upon which these agencies are to operate, 
it is also true that if man does not work he must 
suffer all the pains of starvation. So it is in the 
spiritual husbandly. The work of grace in its in- 
cipiency and several stages of development is the 
result of the immediate agency of the Spirit. But 
the influence of the Spirit in this work is not more 
absolute than are those of nature in the process of 
vegetation. Like in nature, this work does not 
vegetate from nothing. There must also be a germ 
planted in the soul containing the rudiment of a new 
and spiritual life, which, under the quickening influ- 
ence of the Spirit, shoots forth, sends its roots deep 
into the heart, spreads its fibres over the affections 



56 • THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

and then grows up, exhibiting " first the blade, then 
the ear, after that the full corn in the ear." The 
germ of grace is the word of God. It is true, the 
Spirit furnishes this germ, but he does not plant it. 
He does not send it into the soul along with his 
direct influences. The Word is the fruit of the Spirit 
obtained from a former dispensation, as the seed- 
wheat is the growth of a former season. But, though it 
contains a hidden principle of life, it will not germinate 
while stowed in some neglected corner of the library. 
It must be lodged into the mind before the Spirit can 
produce from it the fruits of righteousness. This 
man must do. Hence human agenc3 r is no more set 
aside in the spiritual than in the natural husbandry. 
It is left for man to acquire a knowledge of the Word 
by the exercise of his ordinary faculties ; it is left for 
him to exert his persuasive powers in bringing others 
into the sanctuary where the truth may be deposited 
into their hearts, and it is left for him to throw his 
whole soul into those missionary enterprises which 
are so actively engaged in imparting a knowledge of 
the Word to the benighted minds of pagan countries, 
that " God who commanded the light to shine out of 
darkness, may shine into their hearts to give the 
light of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.' 7 
Certainly, in all this there is no setting aside of 
human agency. If we cannot make the seed, we can 
certainly plant it. If we cannot carry on the process 
of spiritual vegetation, we can at least pray for the 
increase. This thought introduces the other messen- 
gers specified in our text, whose office it is to bring 
the Fountain of Life to the notice of a perishing 
world. 



THE MESSENGERS WHOSE OFFICE IS TO SAY, COME, 



THE BRIDE'S CALL. 



The Bride is a metaphorical name for the Church, 

and it sets forth the endearing relation she sustains 
to her beloved Redeemer. Here the topic of the 
relation of the Church to the calls of grace is intro- 
duced under the most tender metaphor. What liner 
touch could be given our subject to set forth the eager- 
ness with which the Church unites with the Spirit in 
inviting sinners to Christ than the expression, the 
Bride says^ Come? The Bride sees excellencies in 
her beloved that are hid from others. To her he is 
the chief among ten thousand; to others he is only an 
ordinary man. To her he is the one altogether 
lovely ; to others his virtues are often concealed, and 
onl}' his blemishes are seen. She thinks every per- 
son should see as she sees, and often betrays a sensi- 
tiveness that her husband's excellencies should pass 
under such general neglect. From a heart swelling 
with the most tender sentiments toward the idol of 
her affections, gushes a copious stream of praise 
which others, less sentimental, meet with the same 
chiding inquiry the daughters of Jerusalem proposed 
to the Spouse, " What is thy beloved more .than 
another beloved ? " So the Church — the " Lamb's 



58 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

wife " — sees divine beauties in her beloved that 
are overlooked by the world — beauties which she 
delights to cherish and exhibit to others. 

Having opened the spiritual eyes of the Church 
upon the divine glory of the Redeemer, it is but nat- 
ural that the Spirit would then unite her with him- 
self, as a subordinate agent, in publishing the Gospel 
in his general call to the world. The Spirit employs 
her, because it is her greatest pleasure to advance a 
cause which engages her warmest affections. There 
is that triumphant Soldier ! Why not employ him to 
conquer an obedience to Christ ? There are those 
philosophers and those orators of Greece and Rome ! 
Why not turn to advantage their metaphysics and 
their eloquence in the diffusion of the Gospel ? The 
Spirit will not accept the services of those who act 
from motives of ambition, nor the praises of those 
who demand a price for their reluctant eulogies of 
the Lamb. But there is the Bride. Her bosom 
swells with love to her Redeemer. She needs no 
ambitious motive, no tongue of oratory to speak the 
praises of him whom her soul loves. His praises 
gush as naturally from her heart as the stream flows 
from the fountain ; and to her the Spirit looks, and 
in her he finds an agent in full sympathy with him in 
his work of grace, who feels a peculiar propriety in 
everything relating to the glory of her Redeemer, 
and rejoices on every occasion when his excellencies 
are shown to the world. She takes pleasure in pre- 
senting her beloved to the world, but is pained to see 
him so frequently neglected. His beauty, his wis- 
dom and his love, so dear to her own heart, often fail 



59 



to arrest attention or excite admiration when brought 
to the dull and sordid gaze of others. When she 
has invited attention to the one precious to her heart, 
she has reached the limit of her influence. She can- 
not tear from the soul the veil of insensibility that 
prevents others from seeing his beauties. Others 
must be let into these beauties, as she was, by the 
immediate agency of the Spirit. 

There is nothing, then, in the mission of the Bride 
that contradicts what was said before about the uni- 
versal agency of the Spirit in bringing the Fountain 
of Life to the notice of a fallen race. There can be 
no dispute arising between the Spirit and the Bride 
as to whose particular influence should have the 
credit of a sinner's conversion. There can be no col- 
lision with the functions of the Spirit, no lapping 
over his province by the Bride when she says, Come. 
It is still true that the unaided powers of human 
intellect are incompetent to promulgate this message 
of good will to man. It is still true that the Spirit 
has under his superintendency this benevolent 
arrangement. All difficulties, however, vanish when 
we are told that the Bride is an instrument of the 
Spirit — that the copulative conjunction brings her 
alongside of the Spirit, not as an independent and 
rival, but as a subordinate and instrumental messen- 
ger, wdrose pleasant duty it is to bring a knowledge 
of the Gospel into the mint!, that the Spirit thence 
may convey a sense of its excelleiKrv into the heart 
through the Spiritual eyes which he alone can open 
in the soul. The Bride opens the intellectual eyes 
upon the Fountain of Life ; the Spirit excites the 



60 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

sensibilities of the heart, and enables it to taste its 
hidden virtues. The Bride supplies the place of the 
" gift of tongues " on the day of Pentecost. She 
translates the Scriptures into the many vernacular 
tongues of the world, and then conveys a knowledge 
of them through the medium of language into the 
minds of persons of all nationalities. The Spirit, 
however, addresses himself to the affections in that 
peculiar dialect known to all who are favored with 
his precious communications. In all this there is no 
clashing of functions. In this discourse, we shall, 
first, bestow a few remarks upon the character of the 
Church ; secondly, illustrate more fully her several 
methods of inviting sinners to Christ; and, thirdly, 
show how the Church triumphant co-operates with 
the Church militant in saying, come. 

1. The Church is essentially a holy institution. 
Place, for a moment, if }^oif please, the emphasis upon 
the term, Bride. It will be interesting to notice the 
facts and the philosophy of the facts wrapped up in 
this term. The "Bride says, Come." There is a 
mystical union between Christ and the Church, of 
which the conjugal relation is but an imperfect type. 
Christ rejoices over the Church as the bridegroom 
rejoices over the bride. She is as dear to him as the 
apple of his eye. He has highly^ distinguished her 
above all others, in choosing her as his bosom com- 
panion. He might have selected from some other 
world a bride of greater dignity and glory. But he 
clothed himself in flesh, he levelled himself so as to 
be a suitable companion of the inhabitants of earth. 



THE BRIDE'S CALL. 61 



and then received to his precious bosom a bride from 
the wilderness of this comparatively small globe. 
He affords her many intimations of his love. He 
died for her on Calvary ; he intercedes for her in 
heaven ; and he has prepared for her a mansion 
beyond the skies. He nourishes her soul with divine 
knowledge ; he clothes her character with heavenly 
graces ; he fortifies her in raging temptations ; he 
comforts her in painful afflictions ; he leads her, 
reclining on his arm, over the slippery path of life ; 
and at last in their home over there he will receive 
her to his bosom and will wipe all tears from her 
eyes. The Holy Spirit dwells in her. He opened 
her eyes to see the loveliness of her Redeemer ; he 
consummated the joj^ful union to which she was 
elected ; and he ornaments her with spiritual gifts 
which make her so precious in the eyes of her 
beloved. 

Holiness of character appears as a necessary result 
of this union. Holiness is not an intrinsic element 
of human nature, depending, like some latent power 
of the mind, upon an ordinary process of culture for 
its development. " Who can bring a clean thing out 
of an unclean?" Nor is it the gift of a direct reve- 
lation. But it is transmitted from the Fountain of 
moral purity to a susceptive nature by contact. Of 
all beings clothed in flesh, Jesus Christ alone pos- 
sessed holiness as a cardinal element of his nature. 
Hence, when the heart receives him, it has in him an 
indwelling holiness which will blend with the affec- 
tions and show itself in an elevation of character. 
But in the science of grace, as well as in the science 



62 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

of chemistry, there are things which will not inhere. 
A fellowship between Christ and Baal is just as im- 
possible as the assimilation of incompatible gases. 
If such be the antagonism of our hearts they must 
in some way be influenced before a spiritual affinity 
can be produced. This the Spirit does, not by mak- 
ing them holy that they may entertain a holy 
Saviour, but by first making them capable of enter- * 
taming a holy Saviour, that he may make them holy. 
The Spirit's work is to make t]}em receptive by shy- 
ing their enmity and emptying them of every incom- 
patible affection. When they are thus subdued, 
emptied and fitted for the Saviour, then he will at 
once enter them with all the facts and doings of his 
life, both on earth and in heaven ; then he will enter 
them, not only as a sin-atoning sacrifice, but in all his 
entireness as the Fountain of truth and life and 
purity ; and then a receptive humanity imbibing life 
from an indwelling divinity will develope in the 
Church a character of holiness which will ever 
increase because of its connection with a never-fail- 
ing source of purifying influences. The union 
between Christ and the Church implies all this, or it 
implies nothing. Without this result it must be a 
forced union, or a partial union embracing but one or 
more of the cardinal facts of the blessed Saviour's 
work at the exclusion of all the merits of his spotless 
character. A union on either of these hypotheses is 
impossible. It is true, through mercenary motives, 
forced unions are sometimes formed in society, but 
they are always unhappy, and often ruinous to fam- 
ilies. We cannot with a greater impunity violate our 



THE bride's call. 63 



emotional than we can our physical and mental con- 
stitutions. In either case punishment follows as a 
necessary result. The heart cannot be forced to 
love. It must love spontaneously or not at all. A 
formal matrimony cannot be a, crucible in which you 
may melt together opposite tastes, desires and affec- 
tions. It is true gold has often attempted this 
impossible thing, but the frequent fatal explosions in 
society resulting from such trials should convince 
every one that the principles governing our affections 
cannot be violated with impunity. The union 
between Christ and his Church is affectionate, or it 
is nothing. Tell me not that the Son of God would 
many a bride who would withhold from him her 
affections, and bestow them upon things " earthly, sen- 
sual, devilish." His bride must be chaste ; and, to be 
chaste, she must be hohv. It is true, a mercenary 
union, while it cannot blend incompatible tempers, 
ma} r settle upon an incongenial partner a title to val- 
uable possessions. This partial union illustrates the 
partial conceptions some have of salvation. Although, 
selfish and incongruous, although accompanied with 
a misery that the glitter of wealth will not always 
conceal, it furnishes the only principle upon which 
many build their hopes of heaven. They, indeed, 
desire a union with Christ so far as securing a title 
to heaven is concerned, but they have no taste, no 
concern for a union with his holy character through 
which alone a meetness for heaven is secured. Sup- 
pose it were possible in the economy of grace for a 
man to select from the facts belonging to the life and 
redemptive work of Christ his vicarious sufferings 



64 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

which in the abstract would only afford a legal dis- 
charge from the claims of the law and a title to the 
bliss of heaven, and then, to reject all others, 
especially the moral purity of the God-man, as in- 
congenial with his affections, would he not, after all, 
have only a splendid title to an endless misery ? His 
condition would now be that of a person who mar- 
ries for a titled estate and not for domestic pleasure. 
He now, indeed, would have a title to heaven ; but, 
without a meetness, what kind of heaven ? We 
know not what the surrounding attractions ot 
heaven are as a location. It is not important that 
we should know, since misery may sparkle with dia- 
monds and recline in palaces on couches of finest 
drapery. The happiness cf spiritual beings mainly 
depends upon social congeniality. It is enough to 
know that heaven is distinguished rather as a state of 
unmixed holiness, in order to be convinced that its 
characteristic principles would as utterly fail in satis- 
fying the tastes of unregenerated natures in heaven 
as they so obviously do on earth, and that they 
would even starve such natures indirectly by sur- 
rounding them with such an abundance of pure 
enjoyments as would allow no space for those sinful 
indulgences necessary to satisfy their unsubdued 
cravings. Unsanctified persons on earth feel an 
aversion to those very principles which make up the 
character of that blissful region. They are in hell 
when in the society of those w T ho are enjoying fore- 
tastes of heaven. They, however, may find other 
associations and other pleasures. But to be cut off 
from all these wifh unholy cravings as acute as ever, 



THE bkide's call. 65 



and to be placed in a region full of the purest pleas- 
ure would, indeed, be the consummation of their 
misery. 

" And, O, what man's condition can be worse 
Than his whom blessings starve and blessings curse?" 

Besides, heaven would cease to be the abode of un- 
mixed purity and love the moment a titled unholiness 
would be admitted within its portals. 0, tell me not 
that the Son of God would wreck the pure character 
of heaven in order to bestow upon his bride a title to 
an incongenial heaven. At this very point we insist 
upon holiness as not only a privileged, but neces- 
saiy character of the Church. The union Christ 
forms with his saints is not forced and unsuited, not 
selfish and partial, not the union of a nature angling 
with Christ in only one benefit of his redemptive 
work, and diverging from all others, but it is a union 
with him in all that he ever was or did in the flesh, 
in all that he now is or does in heaven. It is a union 
that brings the whole moral constitution in contact 
with him as the embodiment of holiness, and not the 
conscience alone with him as the propitiatory sacri- 
fice. How, then, can the nature of Christ be within 
our natures without purifying them ? How can the 
Bride be in a union so mutually sought and strongly 
cemented, so thoroughly imbued with a spotless 
righteousness brought into contact with a destitute 
but receptive nature, and so tenderly cherished with 
most valuable displays of divine love and a constant 
flow of reciprocal affections, without wearing the 
graces, without sharing the purity, without reflecting 



66 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

the moral grandeur of her Beloved ? It is true, she 
does not claim the perfections of angels whose 
natures and devotions were never tainted with sin. 
She is painfully sensible of the constitutional foibles 
ever clinging to her and reminding her of her 
nativity and earthly relations. But these facts which 
greatly humble her are not secrets locked up in her 
own breast, lest their discovery should startle her 
Beloved and alienate his affections. He is acquainted 
with them in all their repugnancy. " He knoweth 
her frame ; he remembereth that she is dust ; " and 
he is not disappointed because the bride he selected 
from earth is destitute of those perfections he would 
expect of a bride selected from heaven. These con- 
stitutional frailties, though known in all their repul- 
siveness, were no impediment to the union he formed 
with her, and, therefore, they are no contradiction to 
a state of holiness depending solely upon this union 
and not upon any inherent force of the will. A 
knowledge of these frailties even increases the adhe- 
siveness of this union and is thus favorable to the 
conditions of a holy life. It produces in the Bride 
humilit}^ ; in the Beloved, pttry. These are the two 
cardinal elements of holiness. Humilit}^ empties the 
heart ; pity fills it. Humility increases love, because 
the heart attaches a greater value to blessings 
bestowed when it feels less worth}^ of them. Pity, 
which is alwa3 x s attracted by distress, becomes more 
urgent in bestowing relief as that distress becomes 
more keenly felt, more frankly confessed, and more 
importunate for relief. 0, it is a glorious truth 
entering into the most sensitive part of our natures, 



1'he bride's CALL. G'i 



that " like as a father pitieth his children, " so the 
Beloved pitieth his Bride as she sits there in all her 
self-abasement weeping over infirmities which make 
her so unworthy of the love he so richly bestows. 
As a consequence of this holiness — 

The Church is essential^ a missionary institution. 
" The Bride says, Come." Tt is not here predicated 
of the Bride that she may or should say, Come, but 
most absolutely that she does say, Come. It is as 
fundamentally the nature of the Church to sa} 7 , Come, 
as it is the nature of birds to sing. The effect of her 
relation to Christ is, on her part, to enumerate his 
excellencies, as the spouse in the Canticles did those 
of her beloved to the daughters of Jerusalem, and to 
feel a mutual interest for the success of that cause 
for which he poured out his love upon the world. The 
effect of his giving himself to her, and of his making 
her the object of his special bestowment of grace, is, 
on her part, to lay herself and all her possessions at 
his feet for the advancement of his kingdom. The 
spouse sings : " My Beloved is mine, and I am his " 
— " I am his, not merety as a sentimental bride, de- 
lighting onty in his caresses, but as an earnest 
worker for the promotion of his honor among men — 
I am his by an espousal that throws upon his altar 
my dearest possessions as a feeble return for his 
special goodness in giving himself to me in a union 
that the crash of worlds cannot dissolve." The effect 
of her relation to the Spirit as her inward illumina- 
tor is to see what he sees, to love what he loves, to 
desire what he desires, and to co-operate with him in 
every movement relating to the glory of her Re- 



(58 THE MESSENGEBS OP GBACE. 

cleemer. It is true, other reasons may influence a 
fashionable church to say, Come. She may say to 
that man of wealth : " Come ! your money will be of 
service to us in decorating our temple ;" to that 
man of letters : " Come ! your attainments will ele- 
vate our literary standing ;" and to that man of 
honor : u Come ! your reputation will give us char- 
acter and influence in the community." think 
of it ! Your reputation will give us character and 
influence in the community ! As if Christ, by mar- 
rying the Church, did not bestow upon her a more 
brilliant character than was ever bestowed upon any 
institution, human or divine. But the true Church 
receives her missionary motives from her spiritual 
alliance with Christ. Satisfied with the glory this 
alliance confers upon her, she desires only that the 
glory of her Redeemer be revealed to the world — 
that his efficacy be seen in the salvation of sinners. 
She invites sinners to Christ that the}^ may receive, 
not that they may give character. Hence she says, 
Come, to that beggar in his rags, or to that profligate 
wallowing in his own degradation. The church that 
does not missionate is not espoused to Christ. If she 
present the plea that she has enough to do to attend 
to her home interests, she will find before long that 
she will have no home interests to attend to. There 
is no Christ, there is no Spirit, there is nothing in 
her to save her from the fate of everything that 
pas set h away. 

2. The Church, then, being a holy and, conse- 
quently, a missionary institution, we shall next 



THE BRIDE'S CALL. 69 

furnish illustrations of lier persuasive influence over 
the world. We have so arranged these illustrations 
that her influence may be seen gradually increasing 
in directness from that which she mutely exerts in 
her behavior to that loud and earnest call she gives 
through the active missionary enterprises of the da} r . 
It ma}^ be said that we give the church too bright a 
coloring, and the illustrations we will give may seem 
to exhibit the influence of an imaginary church, 
rather than of such as we find in actual existence, 
since many professors of religion, by their private 
behavior, retard church progress, and are such in- 
tense lovers of money that their missionary contri- 
butions, given for the sake of decency, are always 
accompanied with a growl. " How can you," it may 
be asked, " bring together in one institution the 
ardent desires of the bride and the grudging ser- 
vices of the professor?" To this we would reply 
that there alwa}^s have been persons enrolled in the 
Church record who were never espoused to Christ, 
who form no essential element of the Church, and 
who shall not be included in the view we shall give 
of her intrinsic influence. The object of this dis- 
course is to show that the Church in her essential 
nature savs, Come, and to furnish illustrations of this 
truth. The calls of the Church are clear and distinct, 
though their effect upon the world is greatly dam- 
aged by the discordancies of false professors. The 
music of the nightingale in its own nature is sweet, 
though its effect upon the ear may be impaired by 
the croaking, grumbling sound of the raven. But 
you would describe its music just as it is in its native 



tO THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

sweetness. Who would think of mixing its melody 
with other unpleasant sounds with which it may be 
associated in the forest, and then describe it accord- 
ing to the effect this mixture would produce on the 
ear? So 'we shall describe the calls of the Church in 
their own native distinctness ; but as our illustra- 
tions will exclude the disagreeable appearances so 
visible to the world and so constantly attending, 
though no part of the church, we will not wonder 
that these illustrations should seem more visionary 
than real. 

(1) The bride says, Come, by the influence of her 
character. This call is most mute and indirect, 
though exerting a powerful influence over the world. 
Solomon sa}' s that " a virtuous woman is a crown to 
her husband." If the results of her conjugal rela- 
lation are an improvement of disposition, an elevation 
of character, an adornment of mind, a chastit}^ that 
will admit no breach of honor, a devotedness that 
will look well to her husband's peace and prosper^, 
a fondness that will cultivate the little olive plants 
growing up around her table, and a tenderness that 
will drop a tear, breathe a secret pra} T er and extend a 
hand of mercy to tne poor of the community — if 
these be the results of her conjugal relation — then 
she is said to have contracted a very fortunate 
alliance. She raises with her own the reputation of 
him who has chosen her ; she invites to him the no- 
tice of every lover of character, and " her husband is 
known in the gates when he sitteth among the elders 
of the land." These elements of character, praise- 
worthy in themselves, appear more fully matured in 



THE BRIDE'S CALL. 71 



the Church. Here the}' are absolutely the results 
of a mystical union with Christ. Now, if, as the de- 
velopment of an earthly union, they reflect honor 
upon an earthly husband, why then, as the develop- 
ment of a spiritual union, should the}' not also reflect 
honor upon our blessed Redeemer ? Only grant me 
that intelligence and purity of character, a fidelity to 
the interest and honor of a partner in wedlock, a re- 
gard for the culture and well-being of those under 
one's care, and a benevolence that stretches out a 
hand of relief to every species of human woe, are 
virtues that of themselves are everywhere com- 
mended, then I see a tongue in the character of the 
Church that most distinctly "and. most persuasively 
says, Come, to poor famishing humanity. There is a 
divinity in this call. In this, as in the other illustra- 
tions we shall furnish, the voice of the Church is the 
voice of God. The Spirit effected this union ; this 
union gives character ; this character gives influence ; 
this influence invites sinners to the Saviour of the 
world. The Spirit, through the Bride, says, Come. 

(2) The Bride says come by her songs of praise. 
This call is also indirect. In fact, this exercise is 
purely sentimental. In this exercise the Church 
closes out all thoughts about others, and dwells en- 
tirely upon her Redeemer. In this exercise she is 
brought into a closer union with him ; her affec- 
tions grow from a nearer view of his love, and her 
faculties are unfolded and strengthened by contem- 
plating the divine excellencies that are now so vividly 
spread out before the soul. Thus, in her inward 
solitude, while reflecting upon her Redeemer and 



72 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

adoring his excellencies, she is unconsciously prepar- 
ing her heart and active powers for a most vigorous 
and direct call to sinners. Besides, her music is cap- 
tivating. The Bride, in her lonely walk, while 
strolling among wild flowers, or sitting under the 
willow by the flowing stream, is thinking of him only 
to whom she has given her affections. She is singing, 
"I am my beloved's, and my beloved is mine; he 
feedeth among the lilies. 77 The charm of her music 
attracts to the spot, where her thoughts as well as 
her person are secluded from the world, an unob- 
served listener, who catches her sentiment, and is 
at once interested in the happy one who has opened 
in the heart given to him alone such a fountain of 
melody. The Church, by her songs of praise, at- 
tracts persons into the sanctuary who become 
interested in the sentiments sung, and are often cap- 
tured by truth when opposing passions are for the 
time subdued by the charms of sacred harmony. It 
is a homage paid to the power of music that the 
blandishments of vice are illustrated by the dulcet 
song of the fabled siren which arrests the mariner, 
who, forgetting his home and his enterprise, dies in 
an ecstacy of delight on an island of the Mediterra- 
nean. If such, then, fe the power of music, why may 
not the sweet melody of the sacred minstrel arrest 
the sinner in his waywardness, and, as it were, allure 
him into the way of life ? Music, by its magic power, 
lulls the ferocious passions and lifts from the soul a 
tyranny that is accustomed to smother out the least 
risings of pious impulses. It raises in the breast 
emotions which, for the time disencumbered, glow 



THE bride's call. 73 



most freely with the sentiment it conveys ; it re- 
stores to reason her throne, and cheers on her 
powers b} r the stimulus of transporting feelings ; and 
it then invites truth to take advantage of the mo- 
mentary calm of those passions which would resist 
its advances, and steal, under the wings of harmony, 
into the soul, when the enraptured affections and the 
invigorated faculties will give it a hearty and candid 
reception. Even the prophets of old understood the 
utility of music in preparing the soul for the recep- 
tion of truth conveyed by inspiration. When the soul 
is thrown into disorder and confusion by the passions, 
it will not so readily receive the impressions of the 
Spirit. When the prophet Elisha had been requested 
to ask counsel of God in an emergency, he was irri- 
tated at seeing among his petitioners the idolatrous 
King of Israel. Therefore, before he could make a 
discoverv of the Divine will he called for a minstrel, 
that the soothing power of music might compose his 
feelings, clear his reason of every bias, and make it 
receptive of the Spirit's impressions. Sacred music 
must not, how r ever, supplant the preaching of the 
Word. The song must not be considered a better 
conveyance of truth than the sermon. We behold 
with apprehension the encroachments of the choir 
upon the pulpit, and fear that the sacred discourse, 
alreacVv shorn of much of its strength by the limited 
time allowed its delivery, will finally be reduced to a 
mere nominal exercise of the sanctuary. Music can 
never convert the world. Xor must we mistake the 
enthusiasm raised by melody for the more thorough 
and permanent impressions of the Spirit. It is true, 



74 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

" music hath charms to sooth the savage breast," but 
they are only transient. Often they are broken as 
soon as the last cadence dies in the ear, and the pas- 
sions,' rising up in all their ferocity from the spell 
which held them, bring again the heart and the mind 
under a tyranny as unrelenting as ever. Still it is a 
great achievement if truth enter the soul at all, even 
though it be insinuated into the affections by the 
charms of music but for a moment, when every oppo- 
sition is lulled into a state of non-resistance. The 
Spirit taking advantage of these transient impres- 
sions, often vitalizes the truth thus conveyed, enroots 
it into the heart, and develops it into a new and spir- 
itual life. 

But the enthusiasm directly raised in the sinner, 
though it may afford the Spirit an opportunity to 
fasten truth in his heart, is the least benefit he de- 
rives* from sacred music. According to the thought 
which introduced this topic, sacred music is chiefly 
intended for the Church, and the benefits it indirectly 
confers upon the sinner, through the Christian zeal 
and activity it promotes, are far more important than 
the casual emotions of piety it awakens in the unre- 
generated heart. We fear that mairy overlook the 
precise point in which sacred music is important in 
relation to the great work of calling sinners to Christ. 
Our fear arises not so much from the neglect of 
music as from the spirit and manner in which it is 
generally discoursed in worshiping assemblies. The 
fashionable and expensive displays of sacred music 
so prevalent at present, in trying to please an audi- 
ence, sacrifice the sweet, simple and pathetic sounds 



73 



so consonant with religious 'feelings, for the musical 
swells, labryinths and explosions so suited to a frol- 
icsome taste ; and in overlooking piety, which they 
were intended to promote, they defeat at once the 
pious emotions they should directly raise in the 
heart, and the greater influences they should indi- 
rectly exert over the unconverted. Besides, their 
expensiveness interferes with the direct and divinely 
appointed methods of inviting sinners to Christ. We 
hope, then, we may be pardoned for dwelling so long 
on this topic, since it is necessary to know precisely 
how sacred music ranks among the other methods by 
which the Bride says, Come. 

Sacred music is an exercise of the Church, and is 
intended for her spiritual improvement. In devotion 
it ranks with prayer, and is subject to the same re- 
strictions. The Church, though she allows all to 
pray, does not delegate the duty of conducting her 
prayers to a class of persons chosen rather for their 
fluency of speech than for their intense breath- 
ings of piety. Why, then, should she allow her 
songs of praise, alike devotional, to be executed by 
persons whose chief recommendation is, that the3 r afe 
skilful musicians ? The Church says, Come, by her 
songs of praise, not a choir of singers which may be, 
and often is, composed of thoughtless and uncon- 
verted persons. Church music is church music, and 
not the music in a church of the votaries of the world, 
who would carry with them as much religion as they 
do in the sanctuary were they to go and displa}^ their 
musical skill in the theatre. Sacred music is senti- 
mental in its nature. It expresses, in sweet and 



76 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

melting tones, the emotions of pity, and is as retired, 
so far as the thoughts of the worshiper is concerned, 
as his secret devotions with which it is allied. The 
bride, in her lonely walk, sings, not to be heard, but 
to give vent to her secret emotions while thinking of 
her beloved. The casual effect of her music is that 
an unobserved listener becomes interested in the one 
whose praises she -so sweetly celebrates in her soli- 
tude. Would she appoint a stranger to sing her 
song of love ? Why, then, will the Church employ 
others to do her singing ? As well might she employ 
others to do her thinking and her praying, or to feel 
in her stead the emotions of praise and gratitude. 
Sacred music is also intended for the Christian's im- 
provement, and not for the sinner's entertainment. 
It is the language of praise which, besides being the 
most pleasant part of devotion, is attended with the 
most practical results. It loosens the thoughts from 
self and the world, and raises them into a higher 
sphere, where the excellencies of God, now appearing 
so near and so glorious, increase the affections, en- 
gage and strengthen the faculties, and promote a 
spirit of consecration which infuses itself with an in- 
creased mental vigor into every practical service of 
our Redeemer. In this way the sinner is chiefly bene- 
fited Irv sacred music. He may, indeed, for the time 
feel the elevations of this music, especially since it is 
infused with the fervor of piety ; but his greatest 
benefits are indirectly obtained through the zeal it 
kindles and promotes in the Church. Sacred music 
benefits him more permanently by resolving itself 
into arguments, entreaties and invocations for the 



THE bkide's call. 77 



Spirit's influence in his behalf. The Bride says. 
Come, indirectly, and not directly, by her songs of 
praise. When the minister announces the hymn, and 
all begin to sing; when from warm hearts the music 
rolls upward ,; in thoughts that breathe and words 
that burn ;" when every eye sparkles with delight 
and every countenance glows with the sentiment 
sung — there is then in sacred song something so liv- 
ing, so stirring, so earnest, that the sinner often feels 
more than the gratification of a musical taste, that, 
while agreeable sounds thrill upon his ear, &n intense 
interest draws him to that precious Redeemer who 
has kindled in so inairy hearts such a " flame of sacred 
love.' 7 Better still, this music indicates, and, at the 
same time, cherishes and improves a zeal which will 
show itself in pointed and urgent calls to the uncon- 
verted. This is the precise point in which music 
becomes an important method of church influence. 

But the other theory, that sacred music is intended 
for a display, does not secure these results. It is a 
singular truth that the sinner receives greater bene- 
fits from sacred music when it is not intended for his 
entertainment than when it is. Etforts to make an 
impression, even a religious impression, upon the 
mind by the fascinations of harmony often defeat 
their own end. since the workings of this policy tend 
to relieve the Church from the pleasant and profit- 
able exercise of singing the songs of Zion. Now, the 
taste of sinners must be consulted and provided for ; 
what was intended to aid devotion must be turned 
into a musical banquet ; Genius, and not Grace, must 
be the presiding deity ; a hired musician must lead 



78 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

the singers ; a costly instrument must guide the vocal 
sounds ; in short, no expense must be spared to bring 
sacred music down on a level with a theatrical per- 
formance. Sacred music thus lowered ma}^ indeed, 
be an artistic success, and may regale the most re- 
fined ear with its melody. So may the orchestra. 
It, however, lacks the fervor of piety which would 
pour itself into the sinner's heart, and stir up an in- 
terest in the sacred theme far deeper than that pro- 
duced by the mere loveliness of a song. But what 
may we Say of the Church as she sits there indolently 
looking on, while others are doing the singing which 
belongs to her as really as warbling belongs to birds 
on the branches ? She has hung her harps upon the 
w T illows ; she has employed, perchance, Babylonians 
to sing in her stead the Lord's song, if not in a 
strange land, at least in a strange and difficult air ; 
and she, therefore, wears an expression of cold indif- 
ference, which chills and repels those whom she 
should pursue Yvdth the yearnings of a most ardent 
zeal. We allow, some feel twinges of conscience 
that they have so graciously given their songs of 
praise to persons who ma}^ feel no emotions of praise. 
Still they look on complacently, and have probably 
quieted the inward reprover by a compromise with 
the choir, which they thus state : " You'll do the 
singing, and we'll do the praising." This is nearly 
as sensible as if a man, overwhelmed with sorrow, 
should emplo}^ a proxy to give an outward expression 
to a grief he himself does not feel, and should say to 
him: " You'll do the crying and I'll do the sighing." 
We are not opposed to the study of music as a sci* 



THE BRIDE'S CALL. 70 



ence, nor to those exercises which improve the voice 
and bring out all the capabilities of harmony. But 
music in the Church has another significance. The 
language which clothes our petitions is also a sci- 
ence; but who would emplo'y the rhetorician to play 
oft' his skill in the prayers of the sanctuary ? While 
devotion is entitled to the graces of both these 
sciences, its spirit must not be compromised by its 
being made an occasion to display rhetorical and 
musical perfections. In sacred exercises, pure, sim- 
ple and appropriate words and tones should be used, 
through which the spirit of devotion may smoothly 
flow in all its purity, in all its sweetness, and in all 
its solemnity. Sacred music, then, belongs to the 
Church ; it relates to her inward experience and pro- 
motes her zeal and spiritual strength ; and its reduc- 
tion to a mere fashionable and expensive display 
would be followed with a corresponding indolence, 
lifeless formality and cold selfishness, which would 
bestow upon the sinner but little thought and little 
effort for his salvation. 

Again, the expense of this fashionable system of 
church music interferes with direct and divinely ap- 
pointed methods of saying, Come. The more money ^ 
a church bestows upon taste, the less she will be able 
to bestow upon practical efforts. When church 
music is brought into competition with church work 
as a candidate for our surplus money, it will not be 
difficult to decide wdiich should have the preference. 
The Church was not intended to be a place of en- 
tertainment. It is a practical, a missionary institu- 
tion. The Bride says, Come. I would make this the 



80 THE MESSENGERS OF GKA( L, 

motto of the infant Church which Providence has 
placed under our fostering care. I would sink and 
fix it into her heart as the controlling principle of 
her Christian activity, ever teaching her that her 
prospeity, yea, her life and her future gloiy, depend 
upon her efforts to lead souls to the fountain of life. 
Is it right, then, to bestow upon mere sensibility and 
taste the money so necessary to carry to the uncon- 
verted the truth in all its pungent and reformatory 
power ? But sacred music is divinely authorized. 
This is true. But sacred music is one thing, and the 
fashionable music so pompous!}" displayed in many of 
our churches is another. Even sacred music, in its 
relation to the evangelical efforts of the Church, is 
only an auxiliary to more efficient and divinely ap- 
pointed methods of calling sinners, which cannot be 
sustained without money. Is it right, then, to lavish 
our money upon a method that is but subordinate 
and indirect, when such urgent demands are made 
upon our liberality to sustain those that are prin- 
cipal and direct? But again, sacred music, as wos 
said before, must be conducted by the Church in or- 
der to make its greatest impressions upon the uncon- 
verted ; and since the Church is composed of 
Christians, she will feel it a distinguished privilege 
to sing the praises of God, and will ask no greater 
recompense than the natural gratification which ac- 
companies its performance. Is it right, then, to make 
a branch of devotion expensive which can be sus- 
tained in all its cheerfulness without cost, when there 
are missionaiy enterprises languishing for the want 
of money ? This determines the point of my objec- 



JUL bride's call. 81 



tion to instrumental music in churches. My objection 
hinges on the cost of instruments, and not on any- 
thing in their tones incompatible with a true spirit of 
devotion. David* praised God with a harp, and in- 
strumental music was an element in the temple 
worship. But circumstances did not then exist which 
now make it so objectionable. The Fountain of Life 
had not then been opened ; the Spirit had not then 
entered upon his mission ; the Bride had not then en- 
tered into a union with her Beloved ; and to proclaim 
his glory agencies had not then been in operation 
demanding the money that had been expended in in- 
struments of music. But what was then a prospective 
glory is now an established fact. The River of Life 
bursting from Calvary is carrying gladness in its 
course, and the Spirit and the Bride are bus}^ in pro- 
claiming its virtues to every nation and every 
habitation of a famishing world. In an age so stir- 
ring and practical no Christian church can afford to 
purchase musical instruments while money is needed 
to invite souls to Christ. Music should be an assist- 
ance, not a hindrance, to direct missionary efforts. 
Having explained how the bride says, Come, by her 
songs of praise, we will pass to another method of 
church influence. 

(3) The Bride says, Come, by her prayers. In this 
exercise we discover the first glimpse of a direct call, 
though it is not distinctly of this nature. Prayer, as 
a mere petitionary exercise, exerts onh r an indirect 
influence. Like praise, it improves the Christian 
character, and indirectly benefits the unconverted by 
invigorating the spiritual life of the Church. Even 



82 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

when attention is fastened upon sinners as the special 
objects of our petitions, their conversion is not the 
immediate result of prayer, but of the agency of the 
Holy Spirit given in answer to prayer. But prayer 
is very incomplete when it terminates in mere pe- 
titionary language. It is an intense desire seen in 
corresponding efforts, as well as in suppliant ad- 
dresses to Jehovah. David says : " One thing have 
I desired of the Lord, and that will I seek after." It 
is in this complete sense that we discover a glimpse 
of a direct call to sinners in prayer. If the " one 
thing we desire of the Lord" be their conversion, 
we will seek this event by personal entreaties, and 
every legitimate contrivance to bring them under the 
influence of the word. Prayer exerts a powerful in- 
fluence over the world, as will appear both in its sub- 
jective effects, and, also, in its objective influence 
over sinners. 

The subjective effects of prayer are the benefits 
which the Church, herself, receives from this exer- 
cise, including both the sustenance and improvement 
of the principles of piety, which are the disciplinary 
benefits of prayer, and, also, the copious blessings 
which Heaven showers down upon the Church in ful- 
filment of the promise that "if we follow on to know 
the Lord, his going forth is prepared as the morning 
and he shall come unto us as the rain, as the latter 
and former rain untothe earth." The former benefits 
depend upon the existence of principles essentially 
associated with a spiritual union with Christ. In- 
deed, prayer, itself, like praise and all the other 
methods of Church influence, depends for its efficacy 



THE bride's call. 83 



upon this union. Acceptable prayer can only be 
addressed to Deit}- through the intercession of Christ, 
and it implies even a greater intimacy than praise. 
Praise is approbatory ; but prayer is petitionary. 
Praise relates to the divine character, and its glory, 
as seen in creation, may be contemplated at a dis- 
tance and admired by persons whose hearts are utter 
strangers to the love of God ; but prayer relates to 
ourselves, and it implies a most intimate and uncere- 
monious intercourse with Jehovah whose attention 
and compassion we most earnestly crave. Praise 
dwells upon excellencies which, while they excite our 
admiration, may also repress our presumption by 
their splendor ; but pra} T er is a familiar approach to 
Deity; it confesses to him our errors; it unbosoms 
to him our hearts ; it lays before him our wants; and 
it carries to him our frailties and seeks a relief for 
them in some special display of kindness. The Bride 
exhibits the elevating tendency of her union with 
her Beloved, by celebrating his excellencies ; but the 
tender and familiar nature of this union she exhibits 
in acknowledging her obligations to him ; in express- 
ing her dependance upon his bounties, in thanking 
him for his many mercies, in confessing to him her 
many frailties, in entreating his forgiveness and his 
protection, in surrendering herself wholly to his will, 
and in exercising an unshaken confidence in his attri- 
butes and his promises. These principles of piety 
are strengthened by exercise ; and what else is prayer, 
but the exercise of these principles ? Prayer, then, 
indicates and improves a union with Christ, and in- 
sures to the Church nearer and stronger displays of 



84 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

those divine influences which induce her strength and 
efficiency. But a live Church is a prosperous Church 
— is a Church in full accord with the sympathies and 
purposes of her Redeemer whose mission and passion 
and intercessions say, Come, to a perishing world. 
Again, the Church receives copious refreshments in 
direct answer to prayer. Prayer is the medium 
through which she holds intercourse with heaven, and 
it is, also, the channel through which heaven, in turn 
pours out upon her showers of grace which water and 
revive her daily enterprises. But when prayer ceases 
this channel closes. Then devotion becomes dry and 
insipid ; benevolence shrivels in the soul ; works of 
charity are blighted ; the Sabbath school languishes ; 
missionary enterprises die for the want of proper 
stimulus ; in short, a blasting drouth prevails alarm- 
ingly through the Church. The Church that does 
not pray does not live. 

The objective influences of prayer benefit sinners 
in two ways. The exercise of prayer, in itself con- 
sidered, exerts a powerful influence over them, be- 
cause in this exercise the soul concentrates its 
thoughts upon their condition, experiences an in- 
creased desire for their salvation, and resolves to 
spare no effort that would bring them to the Foun- 
tain of Life. Prayer, indeed, has a natural tendency 
to its own reward. The Church goes out along with 
her prayers in corresponding actions. If you pray 
fervently for the salvation of an individual, you will 
employ every legitimate means of bringing him un- 
der the influence of the word, and thus you become 
ill the hands of God the very instrument by which 



THE BRIDE'S CALL. 85 



the answer to your own prayer is induced. But 
prayer is encouraged by the most positive promises 
of fulfilment. " Ask, and ye shall receive." " Seek, 
and ye shall find." But it may be asked, how can 
God, who is immutable, be moved, and how can man, 
who is responsible for his actions, be drawn by prayer ? 
That there is a relation between prayer and the 
bestowment of blessings including the salvation of 
sinners, is a fact intimated by a religious instinct 
common to our race under every form of devotion, 
and is as clearly taught in Scripture as any other 
doctrine of our holy religion. We are chiefly con- 
cerned about this fact, itself, in exhibiting prayer 
as a method of Church influence. There need be no 
controversy about its mysteries and the reasons upon 
which it rests. Indeed, in entering upon such ques- 
tions, we inquire for truths lying beyond human re- 
search, though we may show that the appointment 
of prayer is not inconsistent with the unchangeable 
character of God, nor with the Scriptural view of his 
method of grace in the soul. The first objection to 
prayer rests upon the assumption that the immuta- 
bilit}" of God corresponds with the immutability of 
nature ; and argues that, since the former is equally 
affected by those influences which change the regular 
course of the latter in producing specific results, 
praj^er is irreconcilable with the unchangeable pur- 
poses of Deit}^. This objection, however, can be 
urged with equal propriety against the very experi- 
ence of nature. The earth has frequently experi- 
enced the most marked changes. She has passed 
through periods followed by the greatest alterations ; 



86 THE MESSENGERS OF Git ACT:. 

she has been convulsed to her very centre ; she has 
seen her laws suspended and her course arrested by 
many a miraculous interposition ; and she experiences 
continual changes, which are tending to a final scene 
of utter demolishment. Is it safe, then, to rest the 
immutability of God upon a s} T stem so constantly 
shifting? The physical constitution under which we 
live is subordinated to a higher system of govern- 
ment which exhibits more correctly the unchangeable 
will of Jehovah. It may indeed be suspended in 
its movements, as it frequently was in a miraculous 
age, to subserve an event occurring in the course of 
some moral law, and the divine character will remain 
as unchanged as the higher principles with wdiich it 
is most intimately associated. Matter may change, 
but truth can never. INow prayer is divinely appointed 
and establishes a relation, in this higher economy, 
as unvarying and as consistent with the immutable 
character of God as that which subsists between the 
causes and effects of our physical world. It is to no 
purpose to say that a mere human exercise is an 
inadequate cause of a result implying divine power. 
Prayer is as divine in its appointment as its corres- 
ponding event is in its accomplishment. The claj^ 
placed on the eyes of the blind man was not adequate 
to a cure effected by a miracle. It was, however, a 
means depending for its efficac}^ upon the appoint- 
ment of Christ, and not upon any intrinsic virtue of 
its own. " The fact," says, Dr. Wayland, "that one 
event is the antecedent of another, involves not the 
supposition of any essential power in the antecedent, 
but merely the supposition that God has placed it in 



tut: bride's call. 87 



that relation to something that is to follow/' The 
other objection, that prayer claims to exert a subduing 
and transforming power over the unconverted in 
utter inconsistency with the freedom of their wills, 
assumes too much. Prayer no more arrests and re- 
generates them than the clay cured the man of his 
blindness. That such a power does operate in sin- 
ners, subduing their wills, regulating their affections 
and changing the current of their desires, is abund- 
antly proven in Scripture. But it is not the inherent 
power of prayer. If the consistency of this power 
with the freedom of man's will be questioned, then 
this discussion must be shifted to another arena, 
where objections arising from free agency must be 
referred to the operations of the spirit, and not to v 
the influences of prayer, where the Scriptural doctrine 
of regeneration must be challenged, and not the heart- 
felt devotions of an humble and confiding Christian. 
Having gained our point in driving the objector from 
prayer and dispelling the mists he has thrown around 
it, our present undertaking does not require us to 
follow him and answer questions in relation to the 
vital and all-absorbing doctrine of Christian^. 

Having cleared away the objections alleged against 
prayer in general, we shall now illustrate more fully 
its consistency with the unalterable character of God 
in its special reference to the salvation of sinners. 
It is true, it were absurd to claim that a mere human 
power exerted in prayer could move Omnipotence. 
The volition and operations of Deity can never be 
subordinated to the volition and exercises of humanity. 
If such power be exerted in prayer it must be im- 



88 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

parted b}^ God, himself. In this case, would it be a 
contradiction of his unchangeable character for him 
to move by an effort of his own ? But it is a mon- 
strous assumption of the enemies of prayer that 
Christians profess to exert a power in devotion that 
will move Deity from an attitude of unflinching jus- 
tice, and that will draw him to sinners in displays of 
forgiving mercy. Eveiy intelligent Christian will 
tell you that the atonement alone can exert 
this power ; and that it exerts this power 
by rendering to the justty incensed Ruler of the 
universe a satisfaction by which he can bestow mercy 
without deviating in the least from an attitude of jus- 
tice. Then, the Atonement and the blessings which 
flow through it are reconcilable with our conceptions 
of the adorable u Father of lights, with whom is no 
variableness, neither shadow of turning." We have 
now gained one point, and we shall gain another by 
showing that praj^er does not profess to open a differ- 
ent channel of grace to sinners ; but that its conse- 
quent blessings must always flow through the Atone- 
ment of Christ. Prayer is a condition in considera- 
tion of which God accomplishes his purposes in rela- 
tion to sinners according to his established method 
of grace. Then the blessings which follow prayer 
offer no contradiction to the immutability of God. 
But do such blessings realty follow pra} r er as an ante- 
cedent ? This question carries our attention back 
again to prayer itself, and leads us to inquire 
whether, after all, it has any efricacj- in relation to 
sinners. According to the principle already elicited 
prayer establishes a relation in the moral government 



the bride's call. 89 



of God, and is encouraged with most precious prom- 
ises, only when it is exercised by persons living in 
obedience to the Divine will. " The sacrifice of the 
wicked is an abomination to the Lord ; but the 
prayer of the upright is his delight." The loyal 
subjects of this government are under the influences 
of the Holy Spirit who excites their desires, enables 
them to approach a throne of grace, fills their mouths 
with arguments and teaches them to order their cause 
before the Lord. St. Paul says, "I will pray with 
the Spirit." Again, he says, in his epistle to the Ro- 
mans, u We know not what we should pray for as we 
ought ; but the Spirit, itself, maketh intercession for 
the Saints according to the will of God." Ac- 
cording to another fact, already brought out in this 
discussion, the sinner is regenerated by the Spirit's 
influence. From these two facts we derive a princi- 
ple of considerable importance in leading us through 
the mazes of this subject, that ivhile the Spirit is in- 
diting a special prayer, he is, also, working out a 
corresponding answer. The reverse of this principle 
is likewise true, that whatever motives may stir up 
our desires, the Spirit will not excite a prayer to 
which the sovereign will of God will admit no re- 
sponse. St. John says, " there is a sin unto death ; 
I do not say that he shall pray for it." Why are we 
released from the duty of making intercession for 
this sin ? Because the Spirit will not remove from 
the soul a doom which the irrevocable wrath of God 
has placed upon it ; and, therefore, in his essential 
concurrence with the Divine purpose, he will not in- 
fluence us to pray for its removal. Then, if we 



90 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

"pray with the Spirit " for sinners, our supplications 
will be at once efficacious, and agreeable to the estab- 
lished will of our Supreme Ruler. For instance : It 
being granted that acceptable prayer is influenced by 
the Spirit, and that the sinner is brought to Christ 
by the persuasions of the same Spirit, our prayers 
and the divine purposes in relation to him coincide ; 
his salvation follows our earnest entreaties as a con- 
sequence ; and in this whole transaction there is no 
infringement upon the immutability of the Divine 
nature. Saul of Tarsus was to be a chosen vessel 
unto the Lord, to bear his name before the Gentiles, 
and the Kings, and the Children of Israel. But his 
conversion depended upon a certain condition. Xow, 
behold how the Lord worked in both the means and 
the end in fulfiling a grand purpose! He arrested 
Saul on his persecuting tour, and at the same time 
he appeared unto Ananias in a vision. He led the 
one into Damascus, and the other, "into the street 
which is called Straight." The humble inquirer and 
the spiritual adviser having thus been brought to face 
each other, the result is, the soul of the one is con- 
verted, the mission of the other is blessed, and the 
will of the Lord is accomplished. Who will say 
that, in blessing the services of Ananias in the con- 
version of Saul, the Dispenser of all good deviated 
in the least from his fixed determinations. The di- 
vine influences which controlled the means and the 
end were only different channels leading into the 
same unalterable purpose of Jehovah. Therefore, 
in our regular devotions, we should seek earnestly 
the promptings of the Spirit ; then our prayers will 



'IHI. BRIDE'S ( ALL. 01 



be followed by blessings, not, perhaps, in a way we 
expect, but in a way that will promote our greatest 
good, and will reflect the greatest glory of the Giver 
of every good and perfect gift. And if, in the pro- 
vidence of God, we receive distinct convictions that 
it is our duty to offer special prayers for others, we 
should feel that God has called us to this duty ; then 
our prayers will be in harmony with his will ; then 
they will cany with them a guaranty of their fulfil- 
ment ; then they will be attended with faith, and ac- 
cording to our faith so it will be unto us. How often 
do we visit the dying, when through respect and sym- 
pathy for the stricken family rather than by the sug- 
gestions of the Spirit, we pray for their recovery? 
But our prayers have no faith — no wings to carry 
them to the throne of God, because we ask for what 
is not agreeable to the divine will. But if we " pray 
with the Spirit" the result will be quite different. 
Four or five years ago I visited an estimable Chris- 
tian l&dy who was thought to be near her end. 
Though outward appearances were very unpropitious, 
as she seemed near the tomb by the gradual but cer- 
tain workings of a fatal disease, yet I felt an inward 
influence exciting the most intense desire for her re- 
covery which I threw into fervent and be- 
lieving prayers to the Father of all in her behalf. 
Though she does not enjo}^ vigorous health, she is 
still living to cheer her famil} 7 and benefit the Church 
recently established in her neighborhood. Who will 
say that those desires were not awakened by the 
Spirit who has promised to teach us what to pray for, 
and who knows the will and the Omnipotence of God ? 



92 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE!. 

This principle, also, explains God's method of pro- 
ducing revivals. He sometimes pours out his Spirit 
upon the community more abundantly than at others. 
He convicts sinners more powerfully, and imparts to 
the Church a greater spirit of prayer. The Lord 
said to Ananias in a vision: "Arise and go into the 
street which is called Straight, and inquire in the 
house of Judas for one Saul of Tarsus ; for behold 
he prayeth !" When sinners pray the Spirit prompts 
the Church to pray for them and go out after them 
in corresponding efforts. She may not expect a revi- 
val. She may be observing, as usual, her stated devo- 
tional exercises ; but she sees sinners more regular 
in their attendance, more interested in the word, and 
more deeply concerned for their souls. On the other 
hand, she finds her devotions are becoming more 
spiritual ; a greater unction attends her sermons ; a 
greater earnestness, her prayers; and a greater fer- 
vency, her songs of praise. Her devotions take another 
turn, and she finds herself more and more drawn out 
after sinners. A revival in its incipiency is going on in 
the hearts of the people and in the hearts of the 
Church, wdiich w r ill soon, and probably unexpectedly, 
burst out in a most powerful and lasting reformation 
in the communit}^. The method of appointing stated 
revival meetings seems somewhat at variance with 
this principle ; it looks like making the divine influ- 
ence subject to a human appointment. The Church 
that looks forward to a revival meeting as regularly 
as she looks forward to the long winter evenings, 
should consider that the Spirit may operate in other 
jseasons of the year. That genuine revivals may, and 



93 



sometimes do, occur in this season we frankly admit, 
but to make it a standing custom to hold such meet- 
ings at only a particular time looks too prescribing. 
The Church makes ample arrangements for this meet- 
ing ; she sends for a distinguished revivalist, as 
though the Spirit would flow more copiously through 
him than through the stated pastor and the neighbor- 
ing assistance he may call in; and after spending 
much time and exhausting much labor she often re- 
ceives nothing to reward her forced efforts save per- 
chance, a great inflation and a great explosion. We 
should perform faithfully our Christian duties ; attend 
regularly our stated devotions ; and seek at all times 
greater spiritual manifestations. The Lord, who 
alone can produce revivals, will bring them about in 
his own time when we shall receive a special spirit of 
prayer for a special work of grace in the community. 
But cannot God accomplish his purposes without 
pra} r er? Certainly he can. But he will be inquired 
of; and this is not altogether an arbitrary decision. 
Prayer keeps alive in us a sense of our obligations to 
him ; it strengthens the principles of piety and 
brings us into a closer union with his nature that we 
may live more immediately under the invigorating 
influences of his attributes. O, how good is God ! 
He will bless us in asking blessings for others and 
will grant us our requests in the bargain. Then, 
since prayer sustains and improves the life of the 
Church, thus promoting her influence ; since it ex- 
cites individual efforts for the salvation of sinners ; 
and since it is attended with divine promises of ful- 
filment when it arises from a true spirit of devotion, 



94 THE MESSENGERS OF G.KACE. 

it appears as a most prominent means of grace by 
which the Bride says, Come. 

(4) The Bride says, Come, through the living mini s- 
try of the word. This call is most direct. The min- 
istry is the tongue of the Bride by which she relates 
the excellencies of him to whom she is espoused in a 
consummate and everlasting union ; and in this em- 
ployment it furnishes greater displays of eloquence 
than are to be found in any of the renowned masters 
of either ancient or modern times. The orator finds 
his genius cramped by crude and contracted concep- 
tions of nature ; and in paneg3^ric eloquence by obvi- 
ous and universal blemishes of humanity. In their 
despair of finding in the world subjects sufficiently 
praise-worthy to try their encomiastic powers, 
romance and poetry create their own characters un- 
tainted with earth, and clothed with the virtues of 
celestial beings. Even when an historical character 
passes from under the pencil of the panegyrist, we 
wonder, from what we know of humanity, whether he 
is not made the occasion of a splendid poetic inven- 
tion ; or, whether he is more indebted to romance 
than nature for his celebrated excellencies. But 
heaven gave to the world a character grander in every 
feature than any the imagination ever gave to fiction. 
The utmost stretch of the imagination, being but a 
finite effort, cannot conceive such a character as Jesus 
Christ, whose attributes are infinite. Hence, the 
Bride, in relating from God's own record his personal 
virtues, his divine perfections, his pure and bound- 
less benevolence, and his brilliant achievement over 
death and the grave, flames out in an eloquence as 



THE bride's call. 95 



superior to that of other orators as her themes are to 
those in nature and in the conceptions of fancy. In- 
deed, she seems to speak with the tongue, not of 
men, hut of angels, through a ministry possessing 
only natural parts and ordinary attainments. There 
never was so high a compliment bestowed upon any 
of the celebrated poets and orators of the world as 
that which the people of Lystra bestowed upon Paul 
when the}' called him Mercurius, the god of eloquence. 
Homer's battle of the gods is a magnificent specimen 
of descriptive eloquence ; but the gods in commotion 
were only such as the imagination could create, and 
the author of their engagement, unable to rise higher 
than his own inventive genius, was not mistaken by 
even a dark and superstitions' age for one of the divi- 
nities of Greece. The torrent eloquence of Demos- 
thenes, while it carried along his hearers with an im- 
petuosity trubr sublime, was still thought the voice of 
man, and not the voice of God. But Paul, who pos- 
sessed only human gifts and wanted several advantages 
of nature, while speaking of the true God and of his 
special goodness in the redemptive work of Christ, 
rose so high above himself, and the most lofty con- 
ceptions of fancy, that he was thought one of- the 
gods who had come down to earth in the likeness of 
man. The ministry has, also, the advantage of 
motives superior to an} 7 which only regard our pie- 
sent state of duration. It speaks of the soul, which 
outweighs worlds; it urges repentance, faith and 
regeneration, which, as conditions of real and abiding 
comfort, outweigh all the elements of worldly aggran- 
dizement; and, drawing arguments from heaven and 



96 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

and from hell, it beseeches sinners to become recon- 
ciled to their God. The eloquence of the pulpit then 
has a twofold advantage over that of other orators. 
Its subject is more beautiful and sublime than any 
found in nature or in romance ; and it is inflamed by 
motives drawn from whatever is dreadful or inviting 
in the revelations of eternity. This eloquence is 
really more allied to heaven than earth. The facul- 
ties employed partake, indeed, of the frailties of earth, 
but they are fired by the same subject and motives 
that would inflame even Gabriel, himself, were he to 
address us in relation to our greatest good. If the 
eulogist in bestowing praise upon a glittering speci- 
men of humanity, and the statesman in discussing 
questions of mere secular importance, can enchain 
you for hours, why, sinner, will you, be unmoved 
by an eloquence as superior to these as heaven is 
higher than earth ? Why will excellencies, too pure 
for earth, too real for fiction and too glorious for even 
angels to wear, fail to excite your admiration ? Why 
will motives drawn from the immortality of the soul, 
the terrors of the law, the consolations of the gospel, 
the gloom of hell and the brightness of heaven, fail 
to elevate your thoughts, sting your conscience, 
arouse your affections, check your downward course 
and raise in your hearts heavenly aspirations ? The 
fact that you are unmoved by an eloquence fired with 
such a subject and such arguments indicates a most 
critical condition of your soul. Will an eloquence 
less stirring arouse you? u If you hear not Moses 
and the prophets" — yea, the embassadors of a more 
glorious dispensation, who are intrusted with truths 



THE bride's call. 97 



infinitely more beautiful and inspiring — "neither will 
yon be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.' 1 
These truths heard for the first time would move a 
heathen ; and why they will not move yon is explained 
on the principle that repetition destroys the enchant- 
ment of a lovely song. The dormancy of your hearts 
proves the frequency of your impressions, which will 
close your mouth and aggravate your guilt at the bar 
of God. The Bride never speaks more directly and 
more eloquently than when she sa}^s, Come, through 
the ministry of the word. 

A word to the Church in relation to the ministry, 
and then we will close this topic. The ministry sustains 
a twofold relation, being at the same time the medium 
through wdiich Christ communicates to the Church 
those instructions w T hich promote her vitality, and 
through which the Church, in turn, sends out into 
the world the truths she receives from Christ. It is 
the heart of a grand system of vitality by which the 
Church receives and propels, through every tissue of 
the community, the principle of spiritual life. Hence, 
the Church, giving but a feeble and irregular sup- 
port to the ministry of the Word, has the heart dis- 
ease wdiich is indicated by faint and intermittent pul- 
sations; and when she gives no support, she ceases 
to live so far as her higher influences in the world are 
concerned. 

(5) The Bride says, Come, through the press. This 
call is also direct, and is allied with the one preced- 
ing, though it is more diffusive, more thorough and 
durable in its impressions. The minister in the. pul- 
pit speaks, at most, to his thousands ; but in the press 



98 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

he may speak to his ten thousands. In the pulpit 
his influence is only local ; but in the press it may be 
national and even international. As the pulsations 
of the heart send the life-blood through the arteries 
to the extremities of the body, so the rumbling of 
the steam press is propelling truth through written 
languages to the remotest bounds of the world. An- 
drew Marvell throws light upon the press and shows 
it to have been a more diffusive agent of the reforma- 
tion and more alarming to a corrupt priesthood than 
the mere voice of Luther, when, in one of his replies 
to Bishop Parker, he ironically saj r s, that "two or 
three brawny fellows in a corner, with mere ink and 
elbow grease, do more harm than a hundred system- 
atical divines, with their sweaty preaching." The 
influence of Bunyan, the preacher, was confined with- 
in a narrow circle. Even this was too great for the 
bigotry of the established Church ; and he was 
thrown into the Bedford jail. But the key that fas- 
tened the huge bolt against the preacher, brought 
forth the author, who smiles at its impotency and 
takes so wide a range in religious literature that al- 
most hand in hand with the Bible 

' ' His pilgrim marks the road, 
And guides the progress of the soul to God." 

We admit, what, indeed, the appointment of a liv- 
ing ministry' implies, that spoken language, as a me- 
dium of culture, possesses indispensable advantages. 
There is something so commanding in the counte- 
nance of an impassioned orator, as to magnetize an 
audience, and then awaken its sympathy with the 
truth warm from his heart. u As iron sharpeneth 



THE r,KTDE*S CALL. 99 



iron, so a man sharpeneth the countenance of a 
friend." The orator works on the passions in teach- 
ing ; but the press presents truth in such a form that 
it may be studied with the cooler and more deliber- 
ate faculties of the mind. The operations of the 
passions are impulsive, but superficial ; those of the 
intellect are slower, but more searching, thus giving 
to the instructions of the press the decided advan- 
tage of thoroughness. It is, indeed, too great a task 
for an andience of ordinary intelligence to take in 
and digest in forty minutes a discourse that engaged 
the intense application of a minister for a week. 
Only the more trivial portions of the discourse are 
retained, including the anecdotes and illustrations, 
which, apart from their connections,' are mere wan- 
dering meteors ; while the thoughts which weld its 
parts together and strengthen the whole are liable to 
be lost in the hurry of delivery. The pulpit flashes 
truth into the mind in a more disjointed and frag- 
mentary condition ; but the press shows it knit to- 
gether and braced up with logical muscles and sinews 
into a compact s}^stem of close reasoning. From the 
pulpit we hear truth, and are so hurried through the 
discourse as to have no time to examine terms, re- 
view obscure points, and recall what was lost by the 
vagranc}^ of our thoughts, or the occasional indis- 
tinct enunciations of the speaker ; but from the press 
we see truth, we examine and re-examine it with such 
steadfastness of attention as to transfer it to the 
mind and assimilate it with the tissues of our intel- 
lectual being as the principle of pure and profound 
thought. 



100 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

The press, also, exerts a more durable influence 
than the speaker. This thought will be more ful]} r 
discussed in another place. We may, however, re- 
mark at present that the man whose influence de- 
pends on his physical demonstrations and on the ca- 
pricious taste of his age, lives between the cradle 
and the coffin. His body and his influence wane and 
die simultaneously. Sensationalism, the rage of our 
times, will go out of style like a fashionable gar- 
ment, purchased this season to be laughed at the 
next as a quaint specimen of antiquity. It may, in- 
deed, give a man of strong magnetism a temporary 
fame and influence ; but it will not impart to him an 
impulse that will send him beyond the tomb and give 
him a place and momentum among the luminaries 
shining in the firmament of letters. A false taste in 
its nature is transitory. It is a peculiar suscepti- 
bility of the times arising from some casual circum- 
stance. It may be a fondness for a particular cus- 
tom, or a relish for a particular vice made popular 
by corrupt men of State, or a particular rage for 
money bearing down the finer instincts of the soul, 
or an office-seeking mania spreading political corrup- 
tion over the land, or a more than ordinary taste 
for trivial and dissolute literature, or even a religious 
enthusiasm carrying the people away in an impetu- 
ous wave of sensationalism from the smooth and 
deep current of piet}^. In whatever form the idio- 
syncrasy of the age may appear, it can sway the peo- 
ple only for a time ; and he who conforms to it 
stamps upon his influence the sentence of mortality 
— "Dust, thou art, and unto dust thou shalt return." 



THE BRIDE'S CALL. 101 

If the works of genius depended on a taste so con- 
stantly shifting they would, in a few years, be thrown 
into oblivion. But there is a taste sunk into the soul 
and as uniform as any of our mental faculties, which 
will regain its ascendency after having been borne 
down by what is false, and which shows the sameness 
of its exercise in the praises the people of all ages, 
in common, bestow upon the established literature of 
the world. The fact that the Iliad and the ^Eneid 
have delighted so many ages, have continued through 
so many fluctuating fancies, and, after having passed 
over such an immense track of time, afford at present 
as much intellectual pleasure as they did in the days 
of Homer and Virgil, proves the existence of a taste 
as uniform as the native feelings of man. The man 
who conforms to this taste has a passport to immor- 
tality, because he touches a chord that will vibrate 
through all generations. He lives forever, who lives 
in literature. Hence, the press, b}^ preserving and 
distributing those thoughts which gratify the stand- 
ard taste of the world, exerts an ever continuous in- 
fluence. 

Science and politics are wise in not overlooking 
these advantages of the press. By conveying their 
doctrines to the people through books and periodicals, 
thus securing for them the benefits of deliberate 
thought, they exert not only a wider but deeper in- 
fluence. The political party that expended one hun- 
dred and fifty thousand dollars prior to the last presi- 
dential election in distributing documents in a single 
State, made a more thorough impression in this way 
than with all its evanescent campaign ditties and 



102 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

elaborate stump speeches. Will not the press do as 
much for the Church? If her mission is to convert 
the world, should she not use the most diffusive 
methods of instruction ? If her doctrines are emi- 
nently deep, searching and purifying, should they 
not be carried into some retired place, and there so 
studied that they may mold our habits of thought ? 
The world expects of the Church as much, at least, 
as it does of science. Entrusted with most practical 
truths, she must not retire into a hermitage. If she 
would correct the errors of the world she must con- 
form to the progressive spirit of the world. On the 
principle that friction evolves fire, she must utilize 
the improvements of the age, bring her doctrines into 
contact with the people, and engage in a hand-to- 
hand conflict with error, that she may throw out a 
warmth that will melt down the icebergs, and a light 
that will direct mariners" on life's tremulous ocean" 
to Christ, to virtue and to heaven. Some persons are 
always hiding behind the apostles ; and if they were 
only as willing to do what the apostles did, as they 
are unwilling to do what the apostles did not, they 
would make some amends for their want of progres- 
siveness. The}^ will tell you that Paul never visited 
the churches with his satchel full of books and never 
presented the claims of a religious periodical They 
forget to tell you that the epistles of Paul did more 
good than his orations, and that our knowledge of 
his doings would be but meager and traditionary 
Avithout written language. Of course, the Gospel, 
itself, must not be improved ; but there may be im- 
proved methods of diffusing it. To defend the right 



the bride's call. 



has always been a national policy ; but, while the 
principles of right are the same in all ages, the 
methods of defending them are greatly improved. 
How for could we succeed in a defensive warfare 
with the ancient lance and javelin and battering-ram 
against the grape and canister and booming artillery 
of modern times ? If the world use the press in dis- 
seminating a poisonous literature, the Church must 
use the press in disseminating a life-giving literature. 
Her power must be developed by friction. She must 
keep up with the improvements of the age, and use 
for good the same methods that are used for evil ; 
and he who lags behind always complaining about 
innovations in the shape of colleges and steam- 
presses exhibits more cowardice than sanctity, and 
might as well be a shrivelled mummy set -up in a 
museum for all the good he can do in the world. The 
fire from his old flint-lock will be spent before it is 
half across the immense distance between him and 
his eneiny equipped with modern implements of war. 
The church that depends on mere oral teaching labors 
at great disadvantage. Her local influence, which at 
most is not greater than it would have been before 
the days of Guttenbergor Schoeffer, is borne down by 
the press in the hands of rival and antagonistic 
parties. Let this truth never be forgotten that the 
power of the church is increased a hundred fold by 
a judicious use of the press. 

(6) The Bride says, Come, through our Home and 
Foreign Missionary enterprises. This call introduces 
no new persuasive element, but simply combines 
those already noticed into most direct organized 



104 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

efforts for the salvation of the world. Any thing 
short of this will not satisfy the Bride. Her sense 
of gratitude rising in proportion as the benefits she 
receives are great, she desires to make the most valu- 
able return within her power. Being the expressions 
of grateful feelings, these efforts are not forced, but 
are spontaneous ebullitions of the heart. What can 
be more natural than the following statement, in- 
quiry and resolutions of the Bride ? u I am my Be- 
loved's, and my Beloved is mine ! He has bestowed 
himself with all the wealth of his attributes upon me, 
and what shall I render unto him for all his benefits ? 
This I will do — I will give him the heathen for his 
inheritance and the uttermost parts of the earth for 
his possession. To this end, I will offer nryself on 
the altar of an everlasting consecration to him. I 
will say, Come, by creating Bible societies for the 
diffusion of the word of life ; hy fostering schools of 
learning, thus securing for my Beloved the benefits of 
meiital culture in his laity and ministry ; and by throw- 
ing my whole soul into missionary labors for the con- 
version of the heathen both at home and abroad." 
God is creating opportunities for our Home Mission 
work which the church is grasping with avidity. As 
he sent Saul into Damascus, so he is sending foreigners 
from every European nation, and the heathen from 
China, at the rate of 2,000 per month, into America. 
As he sent Ananias to meet Saul in the street which 
is called Straight, so he is sending the Church to 
meet these heathen in the Western States and Terri- 
tories of our country. And the scales are falling from 
their eyes. The}^ are forsaking their idols set up 



THE BKIDE'S CALL. 105 



along our Pacific coast, and are turning unto the liv- 
ing God whom the heaven of heavens cannot contain. 
Many of them are being trained to missionate in 
their own countries; and, already climatized, and 
familiar with their native customs and languages, 
they promise to be efficient laborers in fields that 
could not otherwise fce evangelized without far greater 
expense and sacrifice of most valuable lives. Thus, 
God is transferring much of the Foreign Mission 
interest to our country to be absorbed in our Home 
Work. To show what a single denomination has been 
doing in this department, I beg leave to insert here a 
statement sent me by Dr. Thomas Swaim, District 
Secretary of The American Baptist Home Mission 
Society : " The first missionary efforts made by Bap- 
tists in this country were about the beginning of the 
present century — the object being to provide preach- 
ing for the Indian tribes and for the new settlements. 
In 1832 this Society was organized. ' The grand pur- 
pose was,' as the constituent members said, 6 the 
preaching of the Gospel to eveiy creature in our 
country.' The Divine blessing which attended this 
work through all its history approved the wisdom of 
this organization. During the forty-three years now 
past, growing with the growth of our country, it has 
aided over 1,000 missionaries, who have preached over 
600,000 sermons — baptized over 10,000 persons — or- 
ganized over 2,300 Churches, and about the same 
number of Sunday-schools — and helped to bring into 
the ministry more than 1,000 men, besides cultivating 
all departments of Christian benevolence. Of the 
Churches raised up, many are now among the most 



106 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

flourishing and efficient in the West, occupying cen- 
tres of influence, and paying back to the cause mani- 
fold more than was expended on them. What outlay 
has paid us in larger or quicker returns ? It is a 
bright earnest of the work yet to be done.' 7 Having 
been thus successful in the past among our home 
population, God is now trusting the devotion and 
efficiency of this Society for a still greater work, by 
passing over to it the worst forms of idolatry to be 
demolished on the western shores of America. Thank 
God, the Bride, to-day, is saying, Come, more loudly 
than she ever did before. Her Come, first sounded in 
Judea, has been swelling, and swelling, and swelling, 
and now, like a sea of glory, it is spreading from 
pole to pole. In the divisions of the earth and the 
islands of the sea, persons, awakened by the Gospel 
sound, are coming, coming, coming, to the Saviour of 
the world. 

In this way the Bride says, Come. In the influence 
of her character, in the enchantment of her sacred 
melody, in the earnestness of her pra}^ers, in the 
eloquence of her ministry, in the instructions of her 
press, and in every missionary effort, she says, Come, 
to poor famishing humanitj^. From the mute lan- 
guage of her character, her invitations grow in 
loudness and directness, until we find her throwing 
her whole force in one combined earnest call that is 
filling the world with the story of the cross. 

3. But, the Church triumphant, as well as the 
Church militant, saj^Come. A voice from the tomb 
— or rather from a redeemed saint in heaven — often 
persuades, where living instrumentalities have been 



THE BRIDE'S CALL. 107 

hopelessly exhausted. Sinners who mock at every 
living call are often brought to reflection and to the 
feet of Jesus by the remembrance of instructions im- 
parted in the tenderness of youth by a loving friend, 
or sister, or mother, long since in heaven. Death 
cannot ruthlessly thrust in the mouth of the Church 
a gag to hush her persuasive calls. She speaks on 
with even a greater accumulated force by her dead 
than by her living. Many Christians only commence 
to live when they die — the}^ live in a higher life and 
for greater influence, and the tombstone, noting the 
consummation of Death's doings, serves as a stake 
set up to mark the commencement of a more vigorous 
career that shall terminate only when time shall be 
no more. A man, who, by divine grace, brings out 
and gives an impetus to eternal principles that are, in 
their nature, aggressive, will immortalize himself with 
them, and his influence will increase in proportion as 
these principles expand and revolutionize the thoughts 
and actions of men. The idea of locality is obliter- 
ated in some men ; no age, no country can appropriate 
them ; they are the special gifts of God to the human 
race. Their actions, embraced within the limits of 
an ordinary life-time, are only the incipient stages of 
a glorious career of usefulness, that cannot be known 
in all its magnitude until the termination of time. 
They may be persecuted, and may die poor, unwept 
and unmarked by their cotemporaries ; but other 
people will see their worth, and other hearts } r et un- 
born will feel the force of their ever flowing: and ever 
widening influence. Bunyan, Baxter and many 
other sainted divines never spoke in life as they are 



108 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

now speaking. Dr. Thomas Scott, the commentator, 
was in fact an unpopular preacher. In his aspirations 
for good he had nothing to encourage him save his own 
native energies and his unfaltering faith in divine 
assistance. Destitute of those personal qualities 
which excite enthusiasm, he was at times almost os- 
tracised, and it does not seem that he was in much 
favor with the newspaper men who too frequently 
regulate their literary notices b}^ the thermometer of 
popular applause. When the mercury is down to 
zero, and no person seems to know or care anything 
about an author, then, like Lord Chesterfield, the}*- 
will scowl upon a struggling work that needs their 
smiles ; but when the mercury is up to blood-heat 
and every person is indulging in enthusiastic praises, 
now that the work is successfully completed, then 
they will encumber it with their help when it can 
afford their frowns. The great work of the Doctor's 
life, not enjoying, at least in its earlier stages, those 
popular smiles which carry a work so smoothly along, 
was dragged heavily through the embarrassments of 
poverty and the innumerable blunders of a business 
incompetency to a successful completion. And when 
he had earned a reputation and had emerged from a 
life -long train of difficulties, then he was ready to 
drop into the tomb. His was little more than a life 
of drudgery for unborn generations — a life of pre- 
paration for a career that commenced in its greater 
glory when he ceased to live. His Expositions of 
the Scriptures, brought forth in much suffering, will 
ever be a power in the Christian-world. " He being 
dead j^et speaketh." 



THE BRIDE'S CALL. 109 



The Church in heaven has an unlimited lease for 
usefulness. Her inviting voice, ever increasing in 
volume, will be borne on the bosom of time to the 
remotest ages of the world. There is u no speech, 
nor language" where her voice will not be ultimately 
heard. Her influence will " go through all the 
earth, and her words to the end of the world." Our 
blessed Jesus could better afford to lose the living 
church, than the ever accumulating influence of the 
dead. The influence of the living church is the 
glare of a shooting meteor, that of the church in 
heaven is an ever continuous light shining along the 
track of time to its most distant ages. The living 
voice will soon be hushed in death ; and if it can 
throw no ray of light beyond the tomb, then the 
labors and sufferings of God's people would be borne 
in vain. Then many a Christian life would have 
shone to no purpose in the dungeon, or would have 
been extinguished forever at the stake. Then the 
Church, herself, would have been, long since, blown 
out by some furious blast of persecution. Then the 
prophet's zeal would have outrun his reason when he 
said : " For Zion's sake will I not hold my peace, 
and for Jerusalem's sake I will not rest, until the 
righteousness thereof go forth as brightness and the 
salvation thereof as a lamp that burneth." Why, 
prophet, do you not know that your heart will stop 
beating long before this desire is satisfied ? Why 
then are you so presumptuous ? Why do you resolve 
never to hold your peace, never to rest until the 
accomplishment of an event lying far beyond your 
earthly probation ? But the prophet knew he should 



110 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

ever speak through his prophesies until the estab- 
lishment and triumph of the Gospel dispensation. In 
this sense he was determined not to hold his peace 
nor to rest " until the righteousness thereof go forth 
as brightness and the salvation thereof as a lamp 
that burnetii." Death may hurl the living minister 
from the pulpit, malice may dip its arrow in poison 
and send it whizzing into his heart, but he still says, 
Come. You may cheer on Satan to renew his fruit- 
less attacks upon the saints, but you might as well 
sit by the ocean and command the tide to cease 
swelling as to attempt to stay their influence. The 
martyr's breath may be stopped, but the martyr's 
influence is immortal, and it smiles at death's impo- 
tency. Then, the influence of the Church triumph- 
ant is greater than that of the Church militant, for 
it bursts over the boundary of the tomb and flows on 
in a continuous stream that is ever expanding in its 
course by the individual streamlets continually flow- 
ing into it from the generations successively passing 
away. 

But the calls of the Church in heaven are more im- 
pressive. Religious instructions, like gold, are pre- 
cious, but, unlike gold, they receive their weight 
from relative considerations. Gold carries with it 
its own standard weight irrespective of the particu- 
lar mine from which it was taken ; but religious in- 
structions depend much for their weight upon our 
conceptions of the instructor's own religious standing. 
We are more influenced by a man standing high in 
religious virtue, than by one living in open violation 
of the principles he inculcates ; though in the latter 



Ill 



case the teaching may be as intrinsically good, and 
clothed in liner rhetoric. We are also more in- 
fluenced Iry an author of an established reputation 
than we are by a man unknown to the world. The 
moral essays of Addison will always be read with 
delight and profit, though sometimes they are clothed 
in a careless and even inaccurate st}de, while the 
same truths as beautifully and more correctly pre- 
sented would attract but little attention as the pro- 
ductions of an unknown author. These principles 
will enable us to see why instructions received 
through the writings and illustrious lives of saints 
shining in glory are pecuniarily impressive. Associ- 
ated in the mind with the conceptions we form of 
their author's celestial privileges, they carry with 
them the impress of heaven, excite in the breast 
feelings of reverence, and strike the heart with the 
force of a direct message from the other world. 
Again, the instructions of saints in glory are more 
impressive, for they are more comprehensive. When 
the Church in heaven says, Come, she invites us to 
secure every blessing along the entire journey from 
earth to glory. The Church militant can say, Come, 
only in relation to blessings attainable in this world. 
She can say, Come to Jesus, because he is a present 
Saviour ; she can say, Come and secure a title to 
heaven, because this title must be secured in life ; 
but when she invites to joys above, she can only say, 
Come, go with me to heaven. But the Come of the 
Church triumphant sounds all along the narrow path 
leading to glory, embracing in its call every* attain- 
able blessing on the way. She sa} T s, " Come and 



112 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

reflect ; Come, and repent ; Come, and trust a present 
Saviour; Come, and be justified ; Come and be sanc- 
tified ; Come, and find grace for every trial ; Come, 
and find an arm to uphold you while wading 
through the Jordan of death." Thus wooing the 
sinner upward by successive steps, her Come at last 
brings him to his heavenly home. " Come home ! 
Come home ! ! Come home ! ! ! Dear friend, dear 
brother, dear sister, dear mother, dear father, Come, 
home !" 

It is true, the instructions of a saint in glory were 
given when he lived and wrote under the frailties of 
earth. But the mind readily glides over this circum- 
stance. Seeing in these instructions the spirit of the 
author apart from his body in yonder tomb, the 
mind easily blends them with the conception it forms 
of a spirit washed in the blood of the Lamb and 
freed from every earthly imperfection. Associated 
with the frailties of a living author they often, indeed, 
want expression. But the stroke of death, like the 
touch of an artist which makes the canvas speak, 
throws into them a finer spirit corresponding with 
the now purified spirit which once uttered them on 
earth. They now awe and impress the heart as 
they never did before. 0, how this is felt by those 
who have u parents passed into the skies !" When 
this glorified author in his writings elucidates some 
doctrine he seems to instruct from a heavenly fount 
of knowledge ; when he exhorts he seems to w^arm 
up under superior motives ; and when he speaks of 
heaven he seems to speak from heaven, and his calls 
are accompanied with a sacredness and indefinable 



THE BRIDE'S CALL. 113 



power that make them peculiarity impressive to the 
living. In this way the Christian commences to live 
for greater usefulness when he dies. Xow a higher 
life is imparted to the influence he leaves behind. Xow 
his works live, and breathe, and speak as they never 
did before. They live in a higher sphere, breathe 
the atmosphere of heaven, and speak like an angel 
dwelling among men. 0, wdiat an encourage- 
ment to labor in the vineyard of the Lord ! Time 
is short and death is certain, it is true. But if you 
live right, pray right, give right, and preach right, 
you w T ill continue, after death has done his worst, to 
say, Come, to your posterity and to unborn genera- 
tions. 



THE MESSENGERS WHOSE OFFICE IT IS TO SAY, COME. 



THE HEARER'S CALL. 



It is very difficult to get some persons to feel their 
individual responsibilities when the Bride says, Come. 
It is true, when the Church is flushed with the success 
of her undertaking, they pronounce we with as much 
relish as if their wisdom and sacrifices alone prevented 
a most fatal disaster. But when the Church is about 
to assume some burden, they use a personal pronoun 
that suddenly translates them to the north-pole, 
where, from the peak of an iceberg, they inquire with 
a nonchalance decidedly impudent whether they are 
going into such an enterprise. We are the Church in 
the flush of triumph ; but they are the Church in the 
toils of warfare and the burdens of evangelism ! 
They admit that the Church should be a light in the 
world, should maintain in her midst the means of 
grace, should carry on vigorously the missionary 
cause and support a religious literature through 
which the Church in heaven may continue to invite 
to the Cross unborn generations. But they say, " I 
am not the Church." Ah! are 3^011 not then? Let 
us see ! 

" Let him that heareth say, Come." Now hide be- 
hind that if you can. It seems that the Spirit had 
such persons in view when he had this clause inserted 
in the text. He thus individualizes the responsibili- 



THE HEARER'S CALL. 115 

ties of the Church, that no single member may shirk 
his duty under the plea that he is not the Church. 
The Church is the individual multiplied. She can 
have no other character, no other responsibilities, no 
other mission and no other glory than such as belong 
originally to her members. Individually the hearers 
are the Church in her elementary condition ; organ- 
ized together according to the apostolic pattern, they 
are the Church in all her brightness and aggressive 
power. Then, if " the Bride says, Come," " let him 
that heareth say, Come," follows as a logical necessity, 
because the former proposition includes the latter. 

But the hearers may say : " We invite sinners to 
Christ representatively through the minister created 
by our suffrage. We pay him our money to say, 
Come, in our stead." Well, this is kind ; and if you 
would o-ive him a little more it would be still kinder. 
But when you gave your money to your minister to 
discharge your obligations did you also delegate to 
him your talents, your love, your zeal which, as 
Christians, 3'ou should feel for sinners ? Are there 
not in your minds and hearts personal and insepara- 
ble qualities which cannot be surrendered to your 
pastor? If, after having appointed a minister and 
rendered to him money sufficient to make him a suc- 
cessful proclaimer of the Gospel, you still retain per- 
sonal capacities which cannot be absorbed in the 
profession of your representative, 3^011 are entitled to 
functions appropriate to these capacities through 
which }^ou may accomplish in another way and with 
as much satisfaction the same end sought by all the 
eloquence of the pulpit. There are different ways of 



116 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

doing the same thing. One way is. pursued by men 
invested with all the dignity of professional knowl- 
edge and recognition ; but the fact that they make it 
the special study of their lives to do a certain thing 
does not restrain those native powers by which ordi- 
nary men may do the same thing in some other way. 
Our manhood must not be absorbed in profession- 
hood. The imprisonment of John Bunyan and other 
dissenters for calling sinners to repentance without 
an Episcopal sanction constitutes a dark page in 
Church history. Even the Church that inflicted this 
gross insult upon religious liberty is now ashamed of 
it, and apologized for it a few years ago through 
Dean Stanley, one of her representative divines, who 
imputed it to the bigotry of two centuries ago. We 
accept the apology, and pray that man's native 
powers may never again be fettered, that religious 
liberty may never again be insulted by the jealousy 
of an ecclesiastical order which should hail, as an as- 
sistance, the good the most humble Christian can 
accomplish. " Let him that heareth say, Come." Let 
no unreasonable estimate of an office filled by men 
trained at the schools of the prophets and sanctioned 
by the imposition of hands, interpose to prevent the 
laity from cooperating with the ministry in urging 
sinners to embrace salvation. Let them have the full 
benefit of the principle, that where there is a capacity 
there should be a function — that is, there should be 
an opportunity for every person to do all the good he 
can, though he may not have in his veins Levitical 
blood nor in his brains dogmatic theology. Let love 
flow from the springs of their hearts for the good of 



117 



others. A pent up affection becomes stagnant — it 
shows itself in a sickly poetic sensibility — it broods 
and weeps and swoons over a picture of romance, 
but never puts forth a sturdy effort to save the perish- 
ing. The same is true of all our powers. A healthy 
mind depends upon the exercise of its faculties. 
Then, to sa} r nothing of the higher injunctions of reve- 
lation, the very laws of our being proclaim, " Let him 
that heareth say, Come." But we would rather in- 
sist upon a cooperative l&ity on the grounds of re- 
ligious obligation than on those of mere natural 
privilege, or of moral and intellectual hygiene. 

1. The laity are at least under obligation to assist 
the ministr}?- in a work implying mutual interest. 
Professional work supposes non-professional agency. 
There is no profession, whatever may be our concep- 
tions of its dignity, that can reject the assistance of 
an inferior as inconsiderable, or little, or mean. The 
physician, adorned with all the professional knowl- 
edge of the schools, and secured in the dignity and 
practice of his calling by a diploma, often tells } t ou 
that the convalescence of his patient depends more 
on careful nursing than on his most skilful selections 
from materia medica. The judge on the bench, 
whose countenance wears the severity of legal 
acumen, needs the assistance of others to secure the 
ends of justice. He expounds law, and weighs 
testimony ; but his sentence depends on the concur- 
rent decision of those twelve sturdy farmers and 
mechanics who are influenced more by common sense 
than Blackstone in their finding. A priestly order 



118 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

claiming higher prerogatives than any other in Chris- 
tendom is assisted in its- ceremonies by those irrev- 
erent boys who tinkle the bells under the gown of 
the officiating confessor. Even in the works of pro- 
vidence and developments of grace the most humble 
Christian, yea the most insignificant creature, co- 
operates with Deity, whose purposes are accomplished 
through a chain of subordinate agencies. If then, 
God, himself, deigns to accept the services of his 
creatures, how extravagant are those notions which 
would so elevate the ministerial office as to disdain 
the assistance a devoted laity is ever willing to 
bestow ? These notions were represented by the 
Church architecture of a past age, which placed the 
minister in a small pulpit built near the ceiling, as 
though he were a superhuman being who must not 
only be raised above the possibility of being polluted 
by the illiterate and vulgar populace, but also above 
the necessity of receiving their assistance while 
pouring down on them the Gospel which in every 
word implies co-operation. Common sense has 
finally prevailed ; it has lowered our pulpits and 
brought them nearer the people, thus signifying the 
familiar and reciprocal relations that should exist 
between the laity and ministry. We certainly should 
not claim a higher dignity for the ministry than was 
claimed for the high priest of the Levitical dispen- 
sation. His office required the greatest personal 
purity, was distinguished by the most costly vest- 
ments, and admitted its incumbent into the Sanctum 
Sanctorum, where he beheld the visible glory of 
Deity in a symbol over the ark between the wings 



119 



of the cherubim. This office stood in the fearful 
breach between God and man, and was typical of 
our great High Priest who entered within the veil of 
the upper sanctuary. If ministerial dignity could 
ever afford to scorn the service of ordinary persons 
as too gross for acceptance, one would suppose that 
the office of the high priest, so scrupulously guarded 
against the least defilement, would have spurned the 
service of a common Israelite, as the Lord did the 
" strange fire" which Nadab and Abihu put in their 
censers ; and that since it was so expressive of the 
purity and stern justice of Deity, and w r as so holy 
that he could communicate through it his merciful 
intentions toward a fallen race, he would have 
maintained it by a direct interposition, as he did 
the fire on the altar of incense. But the high priest, 
though standing in the immediate presence of God 
in the shekinah, and typifying his nearest approach 
to man in Jesus Christ, was assisted in his functions 
by subordinate officers of the priesthood ; and since 
the Levitical order was denied an inheritance, he was 
made dependent on the tithe offerings of the com- 
mon people for his support. The hearers may assist 
their ministers in bestowing on them personal bene- 
fits, in cultivating individual piety, and in doing in 
some other tv&v much of the work engaging the 
energies of the pulpit. That they are under obliga- 
tion to co-operate with the ministry in these several 
respects will appear from the following considera- 
tions : 

The Church is under obligation to evangelize the 
world. This obligation rests on each individual 



120 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

hearer as well as oil the whole church. In her efforts, 
as well as in her triumphs, he is a factor. In every 
combination of Church work he retains his individual 
responsibilities, as the symbol X retains its value in 
every alteration and variation of an Algebraic prob- 
lem. O, how can a Church member hope to be a 
factor in the Church triumphant, when he is content 
to be a mere cipher in the Church militant. It is 
true, there is much work involved in the evangeliza- 
tion of the world he may not be able to accomplish. 
He ma} 7 not be able to expound the Scriptures and 
send them into the conscience of our home popula- 
tion ; he may not be able to visit the heathen, to 
throw into their native languages the Word of Life 
and lead them to a renunciation of their idols ; he 
may be unacquainted with biblical interpretation, 
criticisms and apologetics, and may not be able to 
confront the modern self-conceited infidel who clamors 
for intellectual liberty on a principle that would 
wreck all laws and systems in the universe. Still, 
this work involves his individual responsibilities. He 
must do his proportion of it either personally or 
representatively through a minister he elects to re- 
present him at home, or through a missionary he 
sends across the ocean to represent him abroad. But 
in delegating to the minister a work he, himself, can- 
not do, the hearer can never relinquish his responsi- 
bilities for its faithful performance. The personal 
work of the minister, it is true, embraces obligations 
which belong to him alone, and which, from his 
superior talents and learning, are greater than those 
of other members ; but his representative work in- 



THE HEARER'S CALL. 121 

volves the obligations of the laity which cannot be 
eliminated, whatever may be the capacities necessary 
to meet the moral requirements of the age. This 
work is still the work of those who elect the minister ; 
its responsibilities can never be delegated out of their 
hands ; and it must fall back on them should it be 
neglected through official carelessness or incompe- 
tency. The}^ cannot look upon ministerial failures 
with the indifference of irresponsible observers. Such 
failures, as the result of incompetency, instead of 
justifying the members in criticizing their pastor 
with a malignant satisfaction, should convict them of 
a blunder they, themselves, committed in the exercise 
of their elective franchise which the} r are duty bound 
to correct as soon as possible. Such failures, as the 
result of withholding from the minister a cordial 
support, are their own failures, and should convict 
them of a dereliction of duty for which they will be 
held to a strict account. Then, since the work of the 
Church is the work of her members, though much of 
it they may accomplish representatively, they are 
under the same obligation to give their pastor all the 
moral and material assistance in their power, as they 
are to qualify themselves for the discharge of duties 
belonging to them personally. They are under obli- 
gation to assist their pastor by their prayers. It is, 
indeed, a frigid thought, to urge this duty on the cold 
principle of equity. Christianity throws out a 
warmth which should so melt down the selfishness 
of the heart that supplications for the minister would 
flow out spontaneously before it would be necessary 
to force them out by applying arguments and the 



122 THE MESSENGERS OP GRACE. 

stern principles of justice. Ordinary Christian sym- 
pathy for the minister in his labors, his dangers, his 
dependencies and responsibilities usually flows out 
in fervent prayers to the Head of the Church in his 
behalf. But should compassion fail to secure for him 
the intercessions of the Church ; should it become 
necessary to seek from the cogitations of the mind 
what should flow, unsought, from the fountains of 
the heart, you will find this dut}^, as a question of 
justice, urged as strongly as any you owe a faithful 
servant or devoted benefactor. For, you -elected 
your pastor ; you voluntarily assumed this relation, 
and you are under the same obligation to make it a 
success as you are any of your personal engagements. 
You should pray as fervently for him as you do for 
any of your enterprises. He is, also, devoted to the 
eternal interests of your souls. For you he often 
denies himself of needful comforts ; for you he often 
suffers reproach ; for you he reads, and prays, and 
studies, and preaches ; and, should his application 
for your good waste his energies beyond nature's re- 
cuperative power, for you he dies. 0, who can deny 
his claims to your warmest petitions. Besides, he is 
in a measure doing your work. You must not let go 
the thought that Church obligations are your obliga- 
tions, which you must discharge either personally or 
representatively. You call a minister to your pas- 
torate, not simply to edify you, but to assist you by 
his talents and special training in the discharge of 
3^our responsibilities. Should you not in return assist 
him by your prayers ? He also brings into your 
work native and acquired abilities which, if emplo} T ed 



THE hearer's call. 123 

with the same application in other callings, would 
secure him a competency. This he is willing to 
forego and to suffer every annoyance of poverty for 
your welfare. Has he not, then, claims upon you ? 
To be true to your God and faithful to your obliga- 
tions can you neglect to pray for him ? His work is, 
also, most important. Other professions are mostly 
based on human frailty and depravity, and aim at so 
mitigating the evils of life that it may be possible to 
live in this world a few }^ears. The minister's pro- 
fession is based on the perfections of heaven, and 
proposes to relieve the soul by pointing it to Christ, 
the Giver of eternal life. 0, shame on the man who 
pa}^s his doctor and fees his lawyer, but never pra} r s 
for his minister ! But pra} r er is not complete nor 
efficient until it implies corresponding actions. He 
who prays for the comfort of his minister and, at the 
same time, refuses to be an agent in promoting his 
comfort, either expects God to support him miracu- 
lousty as he did Elijah at the brook, Cherith, or is 
most insincere in his petitions to Deity. If from the 
abundance of the heart the mouth pra} r eth, from the 
abundance of the accumulated store the hand giveth. 
If a man gives nothing, he desires nothing in relation 
to the minister's wants, and, of course, does not praj r , 
though he may be as wordy as the ancient Pharisees. 
Such is the confidence reposed in true prayer, that 
faithful ministers make their chief request of the 
Church when they say, "Brethren, pray for us." 
Then, if hearers hold up the hands and strengthen 
the heart of their minister in his difficult work, they 
increase his influence and cooperate with him in s&y- 
ing, Come, to a fallen race. 



124 THE MESSENGERS OP GRACE. 

Hearers are under obligation to assist their pastor 
by cultivating personal piety. Success is the best 
pledge a man can give of his qualifications. The 
commendation of a physician is not read in his di- 
ploma, his professional card or standing advertise- 
ment, but in that multitude of restored invalids who 
say, " One thing I know, that whereas I was blind, 
now I see." Paul very pertinently says to his Cor- 
inthian converts, " Do we begin again to commend 
ourselves ? or need we, as some others, epistles of 
commendation to you, or letters of commendation 
from you ? Ye are our epistles written in our hearts, 
known and read of all men ?" The minister whose 
flock is ever becoming more godly under his preach- 
ing, will ever realize a proportionate growth of 
power. It is true, a valid ministry is not alwa}^s a 
successful one. A minister is not answerable for 
his success, but for the faithful performance of his 
powers, and may be as dear to God when his preach- 
ing is u a savor of death unto death," as when it is 
" a savor of life unto life." The trial of principle is 
to labor without success. May it not be that such 
ministers lie even nearer the heart of Deity than 
others ? They evince a steadfastness, and a spirit of 
self-consecration, which throws on the altar every 
thing dear to worldly ambition, that are not always 
found in those who are enlivened by the stimulus of 
success. The greatest ministerial heroism we can 
think of which generally remains uncelebrated is 
that of the man who, under the strongest induce- 
ment to forsake his calling, stands at his post as the 
mariner stands at the helm while the storm is raging, 



125 



the sails ripping, and the ship sinking, as resolved, 
if necessary, to sleep with his crew in death as he is 
to stand by them in life. But vox populi^ vox Dei is 
not always true. An unsuccessful minister may lie 
very near the heart of God, but he lies at a very 
great distance from the heart of the people. If under 
his ministry his members are sinking more and more 
into ungodliness, the gleam of his genius can never 
check those popular misgivings which are always 
retorting, " Physician, heal thy flock." I wonder if 
those self-constituted custodians of ministerial char- 
acter, who are always reminding him that his errors 
will impair his usefulness, ever think that their own 
errors will also impair his usefulness, in spite of his 
personal rectitude. But apart from its relation to 
ministerial success, the hearers are under obligation 
to cultivate piety for individual reasons. They are 
commanded to grow in grace and in the knowledge 
of God, not simply as a policy for increasing the 
power of the pulpit, but as a duty growing out of 
their individual relations to their Maker. The casual 
effect, however, of their spiritual growth will be an 
increase of the minister's influence, with whom they 
thus co-operate in saying, Come. 

The hearers may also assist their pastor by doing in 
a simpler and more direct way much of the work 
which engages his energies. I wish here to remark 
that my apparent indifference to the claims of the 
pulpit must not be construed into a disposition to 
underrate its importance. Its influences are obvious 
and are receiving those applauses they so richly 
merit. There are, however, other influences not so 



126 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

highly favored. They are generally unnoticed and 
uncelebrated, because they operate in secret, like the 
agencies of nature ; and as the pulpit can well spare 
our encomiums, we would rather bestow them where 
they are most needed, with a view also of stimulat- 
ing the labors of the laity in this more retired de- 
partment of Church work. The pulpit is not the 
only depository of spiritual truth in the community. 
The man who knows experimentally the preciousness 
of Christ in the foregiveness of his sins, has enough 
of truth in his heart to convert the w^orld. He needs 
no superior talents to communicate this truth to 
others. A want of talent will obstruct the influence 
of the pulpit, but nothing will obstruct his influence, 
save a want of Christian experience. The pulpit 
often laments a want of sympathy with the people. 
Its discourses do not possess the magic power of 
raising men above themselves, of instantly changing 
a congregation of common people into a school of 
divinity for which they too frequently bear evidence 
of preparation ; and, as they are delivered to an 
ideal congregation of scholars, they cannot touch 
the sensibilities of the real congregation before them 
which is distinguished rather by a simple, common 
sense method of thinking. But the similarity of 
their education, the intimacy of their relations and 
the freedom from all pedantry of their conversations, 
bring the hearers of the word into close sympathy 
with the community. The truth they possess w T as 
not culled from the schools, but was created in their 
hearts by the Holy Spirit ; and it is, therefore, an 
easy and pleasant task to communicate it, bedewed 



the hearer's call. 127 

as it is with the tears of a joyful experience, into 
hearts already opened by congenial feelings. By 
applying the rules of criticism we may weigh ser- 
mons ; but we could as easily weigh the secret agen- 
cies of nature, as the Chiristian influences quietty at 
work in the retired walks of life. Who can compute 
the good of the many charities unknown to the left 
hand, of the many words fitly spoken in private con- 
versations, and of the many scenes, beheld only by 
God himself, in which the mother, with face bedewed 
with falling tears, is bending over her child while 
teaching it how to pray and how to live ? Such 
scenes escape the applauses of the world, but they 
cannot escape the notice of our Heavenly Father 
who will reward openl} r every good deed performed 
in secret. Under these influences the relioious tone 
of society is insensibly improved ; but the real cause 
being unobserved, the credit is given to the labors of 
the more obvious teachers of religion, as the attention 
is given to the skill and management of the farmer 
while the hidden energies of nature are covering 
his fields with luxuriant harvests. A conversation 
accident^ overheard of three or four poor women, 
who sat at a door in the sun in one of the streets of 
Bedford, awakened the author of " The Pilgrim's 
Progress.'' The names of these women are unknown 
to fame ; but the few words of a j'03'ful experience, 
dropped in obscurit} 7 , incidentally kindled in the 
world a blaze of everlasting glory. How much more 
good has been accomplished in this simple, quiet 
wa} T , eternity alone can reveal. 

Some of our stronger minded ladies are complain- 



128 THE MESSENGERS OF GKACE. 

ing of the restraints imposed on their intellectual 
energies. It may be that society is ungenerous in 
not allowing them functions suited to the more manly 
capacities they sometimes develop. It is, however, 
a question whether the new opportunities they desire 
would not unfit them for the greater opportunities 
which lie in their own sphere. We would be very 
sorry to see them released from the social restraints 
of which they complain, if the effect would be as 
ruinous to their characteristic graces in religion as it 
seems to be in politics, if we may judge from a speci- 
men made prominent by the recent Louisiana em- 
broglio. We hope no social reform will ever be 
enacted that would dry up the fountain of those 
mild influences which have displayed the beauties of 
faith in every age of the- Church. Were all our 
Church workers Pauls and Luthers, Christianity 
would appear in all her grandeur and invincibility. 
But we need these gentler influences to give variety 
and picturesqueness to the scene, to spread over it a 
profusion of tender graces that would soften the rug- 
geclness of more valorous workers, as flowers and 
other beauties of the landscape soften the effect of 
craggy cliffs and stately oaks. The sacred historian 
gives us a specimen of the diversity of gifts in the 
Church, when he presents to us, in the same chapter, 
Paul, the great Apostle of the Gentiles, and Dorcas, 
the humble disciple of Joppa. The one illustrates 
the grand and heroic virtues of faith ; the other illus- 
trates its more delicate and beautiful workings in the 
affections. The stalwart genius of Paul dazzled in 
his eloquent oration before King Agrippa ; the love- 



fHF. rTF.AKFK 6 CALL. 129 






liness of Dorcas appeared in the mercy which dropped 

from her heart. "as gentle rain from heaven," upon 
the indigent widows of Joppa. He proved doctrines ; 
she embellished them. He built Churches; she 
clothed widows. She was, indeed, an unassuming 
illustration of the refining influences of the Gospel 
Paul* so heroically defended before the rulers of 
the earth. Her sweet and retired spirit of benevo- 
lence permeates Christendom, and has stimulated 
thousands of her sisters to organize themselves, for 
similar work, into what are known as Dorcas 
Societies. 0, Christian ladies, do not be impatient 
in your sphere. It has been graced by the most 
beautiful characters, and tliroua'h its hidden recesses 
an influence. Altered and purified, has ever been flow- 
ing to cheer the habitations of ignorance and sorrow. 
Of course yon will not excite popular demonstrations. 
The world applauds nothing but what is grand and 
heroic. Your falling tears and secret prayers are 
like the dew and the atmosphere which, though most 
valuable, are least recognized ; while the machinery, 
which gleans what they produce, monopolizes the 
encomiums of "the farmer. But why need yon care 
for the applauses of men when your influences are 
known to your Father in heaven ? Thoroughly sift 
the most brilliant career, and yon will find that the 
solid wheat bears but a small proportion to the chaff 
of popular applause. By your secret influences yon 
may bring as much wheat without the chatf into the 
garner of the Lord. The nation boasts of her great 
men; the Church points with an honest pride to the 
best and most learned men in the world and says, 



130 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

i; These are among my most precious ornaments, 
brighter far than gold, and silver, and precious 
stones." But what influence made them ? The world 
pointy to our republican institutions, and the effi- 
ciency of our edncatonal enterprises, but an angel in 
heaven points to an influence behind these, concealed 
within the retirement of the mother's heart. 

We have not spoken of the more prominent influ- 
ences which laymen of genius and wealth are exert- 
ing in the illustrious enterprises of the Church. 
These are known to all ; and we would rather speak 
of those not known to all. That these influences 
assist the pastor is evident from the fact that in pro- 
portion as souls are converted through them, his 
labors are lessened in the community. Besides, they 
create a healthy religious atmosphere in society 
which inspires the minister and enables him to preach 
with greater animation to a people who, from the 
same cause, are better disposed to hear. The obliga- 
tion under which the laity are placed to render such 
service, rests on the general principle we have already 
explained — that the ministry represents them in a 
work for w T hich they, themselves, are responsible. It 
rests, also, on another principle we shall hereafter 
explain. 

The assistance the laity can render in the several 
respects pointed out, is most necessary to a successful 
ministiy. We know of no greater object of pity 
than a minister unsupported by a cooperative laity. 
With all his talents he must be a failure. He must 
fail to add persons to a Church which has made no 
eflort for their salvation, and which, by a palpable in- 



THE HEARER'S CALL. 131 



difference to the success of her spiritual instructor, 
has lost the confidence of the community. He must 
fail by the force of his talents to build up a Church 
which, by its intense earthliness, has driven out the 
spirit of Christ. Besides, the coldness of his mem- 
bers and their indifference to his spiritual and 
temporal wants will so react on his spirits as to de- 
stroy his wonted power in the pulpit. The Siamese 
twins were apprehensive that when one would die, the 
other would live to experience the horror of being con- 
nected with a ghastly body of death. They consulted 
eminent surgeons who informed them that it was im- 
possible to separate them, but assured them that both 
would die at the same time. We condole the misfor- 
tune of a living minister inseparably fastened to a dead 
Church which no longer circulates in him the warmth 
of Christian sympathy. In all the desperation of his 
situation, he cries out. " 0, wretched man that I am. 
who shall deliver me from the body of this death?'' 
We can, however, allay his apprehension of a con- 
tinuance of this calamity by assuring him that it will 
not be long until he, also, will die. The life and 
power of the ministry depends on the injunction : 
bt Let him that is taught in the word communicate to 
him that teacheth in all good things." 

2. Hearers of the Word are under obligation to 
do personally, all the good they can, independently 
of their obligation to the ministry. We now enter 
upon a new line of argumentation. What we said 
before had reference to a successful ministry ; what 
we say now has reference to a successful laity resting 



182 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

on obligations of its own, apart from the claims ot 
the pulpit. In the former discussion we enjoyed the 
felicity of having met the views of all Christians. 
All admit that the hearer should say, Come, in- 
directly through the minister by praying for him, by 
promoting his comfort and affording him all the 
moral influences of a personal piety practiced in 
some humble sphere of life. But when he says. 
Come, directly, then jealousy, in all its green-eyed 
majesty , shows itself. He is now an impertinent in- 
truder in a circle where he has no business ! His 
duty is to assist the ministry; but should he per- 
form its functions, he should be punished by the 
civil or ecclesiastical power, as Uzzah was stricken 
dead b}^ the wrath of Jehovah for reaching out his 
hand to steady the ark which it was his duty only to 
carry ! Why, admit this rival, and in proportion as 
his influences increase will the dignity of the pulpit 
be lowered ! In all seriousness, is the pulpit, in- 
deed, so inherently weak that it cannot hold its own 
by the side of a working laity ? We of course 
must not confound with lay preaching the earnest 
personal entreaties of a Christian to his unconverted 
neighbors. We are most decidedly opposed to the 
former, as it tends to abolish an order of divine ap- 
pointment. An active laity is so contiguous to an 
active ministry that in encouraging the one we may 
seem to give, countenance to an invasion of the other. 
Nothing certainty can be more foreign to our 
thoughts. To the ministiy belongs the greatest pro- 
fessional dignity. Its functions require special gifts 
and training; were established by Jesus Christ; and 



THE HEARER'S CALL. 183 

are provided for by persons particularly called by 
the Holy Spirit, and scripturally set apart for their 
peculiar work by the solemn imposition of hands. 
We would not detract in the least from its dignity. 
It is doing a work which no other order of men can 
do, and in doing this work it represents the Church 
in her greatest evangelical efforts. The Lord has 
ordained its support by moral and material means. 
and also the esteem in which it should be held, in 
the following language: "Know them that labor 
among you, and are over you in the Lord, and ad- 
monish you ; and esteem them very highly in love 
for their work's sake." But then the ministry should 
not hinder the free exercise of the gifts and Chris- 
tian affections which the laity may possess. The 
hearers of the Word have qualifications which 
cannot be delegated to the ministry, for which they 
are personally responsible, and which, if emplo^yed 
in their own sphere, and according to the opportu- 
nities which may open to them, may accomplish a 
vast amount of good in the world. 

As was said before, the original obligation to 
evangelize the world rests with Christians in gen- 
eral. St. Paul says : "As we "have therefore opportu- 
nity, let us do good unto all men, especially to them 
who are of the household of faith." This injunction, 
while it includes Paul him-self as the representative 
of the clergy, was addressed to the lay Christians of 
Galatia. This original obligation cannot be absorbed 
by any institution, human or divine. There is not a 
single native facultj' nor a single Christian affection 
that can be restrained from doing good by any 



134 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

special regulation of Christianity. From this gen- 
eric fountain, the ministry, as a particular method 
of doing good, derives its obligation. Responsi- 
bility flows out from the laity to the clerg}^, and not 
from the clergy to the laity. The clergy is the ser- 
vant of the laity, and not the laity of the clergy. 
It is true, an order of men to preach the Gospel was 
established b}^ Christ. But this institution is not 
arbitrary ; it is intended to supply those functions 
embraced in evangelical work requiring special gifts 
and training ; and it primarily rests on the general 
obligation under which all Christians are placed to 
evangelize the world. It was shown under the last 
proposition that the obligations in relation to those 
functions belonging to the province of the pulpit are 
discharged by calling a minister and promoting his 
influence by prayer, spiritual growth and practical 
piety. But the hearers of the Word delegate to the 
ministry such functions only as they have neither 
gifts nor opportunities to perform. All others, 
which, indeed, constitute a large field for the prac- 
tice of benevolence, they still retain and are under 
the same obligation to perform as though the min- 
istry had never been instituted. 

But how can the hearer select his individual duties 
from the sphere of usefulness retained by the laity ? 
He certainly cannot do all the good it is his privi- 
lege to do, and must, then, be guided by some prin- 
ciple in making a selection. The good we are en- 
joined to do is a gen-eric term, including the several 
kinds of benevolence which promote man's physical, 
intellectual and religious well-being. It is true, the 



the hearer's call. 186 

proposition that he is under obligation to do all fix- 
good he ran seems sufficiently explicit to determine 
his duties. But his ability depends on something 
besides mere capacity. Capacity may be reduced 
to impotency by the intervention of circumstances. 
The good he can do does not mean the good he can 
do by employing his faculties in a particular pursuit, 
added to the good he can do by an equal devotion of 
his faculties to some other pursuit. This would be 
doubling and, perhaps, trebling his capacities, thus 
giving him the work of two or three persons taken 
together. The good he can do he becomes just as in- 
capable of doing, when his powers are absorbed in 
another calling, as though he wanted the necessary 
capacities. A man may have the talents necessary 
to insure him success in the ministry, but Provi- 
dence may direct him to some secular calling, where 
his talents ma}' be employed to a better advantage. 
Xow. in proportion as his time and energies are em- 
ployed in his legitimate business will his opportuni- 
ties be lessened for evangelical work. Hence, the 
proposition that hearers are under obligation to do 
all the good they can is sufficientlv qualified by the 
Apostle's injunction: ,; As we have therefore oppor- 
tunity let us do good unto all men." Then, man's 
gifts and opportunities indicate the duties God in- 
tends him to perform. The gifts are from the ador- 
able Author of nature and grace ; the opportunities 
are the unfoldings of Providence ; and as both are 
ordered b}' the unerring wisdom of God, they are in- 
tended to be used in whatever sphere they are found. 
This principle is as divine as any institution of 



136 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 



Christianity, and cannot, therefore, be affected by 
the functions of the ministry. Then, if the hearer 
can say, Come — that is, if he have the gift and the 
opportunity to say, Come — let him say, Come ; and 
in doing so he speaks under a divine commission as 
truly as the man who. under the most solemn sanction, 
unfolds the unsearchable riches of the Gospel. 

The important question, then, is, does he, indeed. 
possess such qualifications ? The hearer specified in 
the text is one who, by hearing the Word, is regen- 
erated b} r its power, and who. though wa'nting the 
gifts of an orator and the polish of culture, possesses 
the higher eloquence of a joyful experience, which 
directly plays upon the heart and stirs up the affec- 
tions. And 0, many, many are the opportunities 
afforded him to speak a word in season to the uncon- 
verted wdiile pursuing his regular calling. In his 
daity intercourses, with nothing save an experimental 
training, he ma}^ do even more good than the man 
who sports the learning of the schools. As many 
fish may be caught by ordinary means as b}^ the 
most finished improvements of angling. A man may 
give his long, silken line so. great a sweep as to send 
his hook into the tree, where it, instead of the fish, is 
fastened in the meshes ; and to extricate it he finds 
it as difficult as the fish do to get hold of it But a man 
more intent on catching fish than on displaying a 
glittering reel takes the commonest kind of rod, with 
the commonest kind of line and hook, and goes to 
the brook where the fish are to be caught. He lets 
his hook drop right down into the water ; he gets a 
bite ; he pulls out a fish. It w r ill not do to say that 






the hearer's call. 137 

he ought not to fish because he does not display the 
most improved implements of angling. The man 
who can catch fish ought to fish, and the man who can- 
not catch fish ought not to fish. In like manner a man 
may make so great a sweep of learning as to send his 
(i os pel hook into a high region, uninhabited by sin- 
ners, where it becomes so entangled with philosophy, 
science and metaphysics that with all his jerking he 
cannot loosen it from its perplexity. He fails at an 
inextricable point, too high for human fish, even 
though they jump up at the hook out of their own 
element. But the hearer rnay drop into the sinner's 
ear a few simple words, which will fasten themselves 
to his heart and secure it for the Redeemer's service. 
Now. it will not do to say that he ought not to fish 
for men because he has not the vestments of a regu- 
lar teacher of religion. The man who can lead souls 
to Christ ought to lead souls to Christ. He is under 
an obligation to do so that cannot be lifted from him 
by any special enactment of the Gospel. I am not 
so great an admirer of Mr. Moody as to believe him 
a better preacher than Paul because he speaks to 
larger congregations; nor am I so deceived by the 
glamour of his doings as to call anything pure 
good but what remains after even' particle of sensa- 
tionalism has been sifted from the stir he is creating 
in the world. His lay preaching, aided greatly by 
the secular press, which notices sensational topics 
more readily than real merit, is. we fear, increasing a 
false taste, which distinguishes the present age and 
unfits the popular mind for the more solid influences 
of an intelligent pulpit, Still he is benefiting sinners 



138 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

by his simple and direct talk, and may be offered in 
this work as an illustration of the good a man may 
do without education or even the natural gifts of an 
orator. We find, however, a better illustration of 
lay influences in the Young Men's Christian Associa- 
tions scattered over the country. In these, young 
men, fired with Christian zeal and furnished by 
Providence with opportunities for doing good with- 
out infringing on their secular engagements, are 
wielding, as lay workers and not lay preachers, a most 
stupendous power in reclaiming the fallen and in 
beating back the aggressions of vice which threaten 
our young people, just leaving the parental roof to 
try their fortunes in a world of temptation. 0, it is 
a thought most stimulating to lay workers that this 
grand force in Christendom originated in the year 
1844 with a single young man of London. Impressed 
with the importance of making some effort to save 
the young men exposed to the vices of a large city, 
he invited three or four of his friends to meet in his 
room to pray for strength to save their careless com- 
panions. Small and unpretending as was this prayer- 
meeting, it was, by the blessing of God, the com- 
mencement of an influence indispensable to the moral 
welfare of our towns and commercial centres, where 
our young men are crowded together and exposed to 
the power of sin in all its seductive forms. The per- 
tinency of this illustration consists in the fact that 
these workers are doing good without assuming the 
vestures of the clergy or loosening their obligations 
to secular business. 

A faithful pulpit implies in its results a working 



the header's Call. 130 

laity. How inconsistent, then, are those notions 
which would claim for the ministry the peculiar 
right to invite sinners to the cross, and would cast 
an eye of suspicion upon the earnest entreaties of 
persons whose zeal was kindled by the very sermons 
delivered to them every Sabbath day. They are 
taught by the pulpit to reclaim the fallen ; and yet. 
when tlie}^ employ their talents and Christian affec- 
tions for the good of man and the glory of God, they 
must be told that their legitimate sphere is to teach 
their neighbors how fields are plowed, how houses 
are built, how fortunes are made. They must be told 
that they are incompetent to treat successfully a 
soul made up of so many fine and complicated tis- 
sues, and that their dabbling in evangelical work 
would lower the professional dignity of those who 
are specially trained for the skillful work of Gospel 
practitioners. But should not the pulpit make them 
competent ? and is not its dignity raised rather than 
lowered by the intelligent efforts of laymen who 
drew their knowledge and inspiration from its dis- 
courses ? Success alwa3 T s elevates a profession. The 
pulpit is not lowered by the elevation of its hearers, 
but by the incompetenc3 T and moral obliqueness of its 
incumbents. Without pointing out the import of 
most sermons delivered to Christians, we may ask, 
what does the minister teach, when he preaches from 
the text, "Be ye doers of the Word, and not hearers 
only, deceving yourselves," if he does not teach that 
hearing and doing are as inseparably connected in 
religion as cause and effect are in nature, and that 
bare hearers, by arguing that faithfulness to one 



140 TH£ messengers of grace,. 

part of their work discharges the obligation they are 
under to the other — thus holding that a head filled 
with knowledge will compensate the want of a heart 
filled with good affections and a life filled with good 
works — are imposing on themselves the most fatal 
deception ? Then, ministers must confine their labors 
to sinners, and quit the discussion of topics relating 
to practical godliness, if they would have their hear- 
ers refrain from saying, Come, to perishing sinners. 
But the minister may say, we teach our hearers 
the elements of godliness, that they may admire and 
not imitate divine goodness, and that their piety, un- 
tainted with thoughts of human degeneracy, may 
grow from pure sentiment of moral esteem. This 
would do if all hearers were in heaven and only min- 
isters remained on earth, who, by a rare theological 
drill, could sustain the check which an occasional 
turning of their thoughts from the grandeur of God 
to the corruptions of the world would give to their 
devout aspirations. But hearers, as well as minis- 
ters, are, for a season, retained here ; and they can- 
not cultivate piety by merely gazing on the magnifi- 
cence of Deity, while there is lying before their eyes 
every species of human vice. In a measure, their 
acquaintance with divine goodness depends on their 
efforts to reform the shattered inebriate and to edu- 
cate the neglected youth, growing as wild in society 
as brambles in the waste land. It is true, in heaven 
they may study more directly, and with finer concep- 
tions, the character of Jehovah in all its glory, as 
they stand by the ,; river of life, pure as crystal, pro- 
ceeding out of the throne of God and the Lamb/ 1 or 






"THE HEARER^ CALL. Ml 



as they walk, in lily-white robes, the golden streets 

of the New Jerusalem. But here the process of cul- 
ture will lend them into by-ways and hovels of 
wretchedness, and will bring them into contact with 
every species of human woe and every form of human 
depravity. The student may acquaint himself with 
the abstract beauties of mathematics in the recitation 
room as lie draws diagrams and measures angles with 
lingers sparkling- with gold rings ; but he must 
transfer the process from the blackboard to spacious 
tracts of land, and must carry the chain over hills, 
through swamps and dense thickets, if he would learn 
these beauties as they are enhanced by the utility of 
the science. The culture of mere sentimental piety 
is confronted by two principles, which, though they 
may have no place in heaven, are essential to thor- 
ough training on earth ; namely, we teach that we 
may learn, and we learn that we may teach. These 
principles harmonize and include each other. Do- 
cendo discimus, we learn by teaching. This is a 
favorite motto in every department of mental educa- 
tion, but it is more especially applicable to heart 
culture. The poet may give so fine a description of 
benevolence as to open fountains of useless tears : 
the minister may. by his soothing discourses on ab- 
stract goodness, lull us to sleep and cause us to dream 
that Ave are in the Promised Land, where 

• • Sickness and sorrow, pain and death 
Are felt and feared no more ;" 

but if we would learn benevolence as a living princi- 
ple, and as it diffuses through the soul a secret satis- 



:U2 i nv: messengers or &&ace 



(action known only to those who have relieved the 
suffering and have received in return their warmest 
benedictions, we must teach benevolence by the daily 
practice of our lives. 

But we also learn that we may teach. The end of 
knowledge here specified is the true one, as will ap-. 
pear from several considerations. First, our con- 
dition, as it is ordered by Infinite Wisdom, will be 
best adapted to the end for which we should secure 
the improvement of our faculties. If that secret 
satisfaction and refreshment, so highly eulogized by 
poets and students in their trial essays, which the 
soul derives from drinking of the fount of knowledge, 
were the principle end of culture, is there any imper- 
tinency in the question why Infinite Goodness has 
not placed us in such a condition in which this end 
may be most readily secured ? We can understand 
how the soul, elevated above the mists of mortality, 
can be sustained in a constant search for knowledge 
by the secret complacency which every acquisition 
affords. Its faculties, released from their earthly 
clogs, exert themselves with such ease and agility in 
the pure atmosphere of heaven that they never become 
wearied, and that the very pleasure of their exercise 
furnishes motives for their constant employment. 
But thrown, as we are, into a world of sinners, our 
faculties, so encumbered with objects of sense, are 
too unwieldy to be employed for a long time in deep 
researches without such weariness as will abate, if 
not extinguish, the natural pleasure which would 
otherwise attend the pursuit of knowledge. If, then, 
we should learn merely for the entertainment this 



THE HEAREli'S CALL. 148 

exercise affords, why does not God instantly transfer 
a man who has become a devout hearer into heaven, 
where he may prosecute his studies with pleasure 
and alacrity ? Why is he retained on earth, and 
compelled to make inquiries under so many disad- 
vantages, if it is not intended that his attainments 
should be employed for the good of others? But. 
secondly, the strongest motives that stimulate our 
faculties are included in the end for which knowl- 
edge should be secured. If this end is simply the 
pleasure the mind feels in the exercise of its powers, 
why is it that a man whom fortune has released from 
the cares which chill many noble aspirations does not 
grasp with avidity his rare opportunities to satiate 
his soul by drinking deeply of the Pierian spring ? 
Why is it that great fortunes are not associated with 
large stores of knowledge ? In point of fact . the op- 
posite is true. The world furnishes but few instances 
of scholars who became eminent by aimless study. 
The native thirst of the soul, united with a compan- 
ion so heavy and unwieldy, is not so great as some 
would make it, and it affords but a slender incentive 
to the mind in its pursuit of information. But it is 
quite otherwise when we study for the improvement 
of others. The end we now select furnishes motives 
that will overcome the indolence of our faculties, and 
will sustain them in a state of constant activity. the 
thought that we are following the example of our 
blessed Saviour in doing good, and that for our in- 
fluence there is less ignorance, less vice and less 
wretchedness in the world, will invigorate our facul- 
ties as nothing else will, Our most laborious stu- 



144 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

dents and profound scholars are those who aim at the 
improvement of their species. Then we should learn 
that we may teach. 

We should build churches for the same purpose as 
we build school houses. We send our children to 
school, not that they may spend a life time in study- 
ing arithmetic and English grammar simply for the 
pleasure these sciences afford, but that they may be 
sufficiently disciplined to engage in the active pur- 
suits of life. In like manner the hearer should goto 
church, not to hear for the one thousandth time a 
discourse on practical godliness merely for the 
pleasure of hearing it ; not to spend a lifetime there 
sitting behind his hymn-book, or solemnly gazing at 
the preacher, or reverently bowing his head in sweet 
slumbers ; but to receive a message which he should 
make all possible haste to execute in the commu- 
nity. If this end were kept in view, smaller churches 
with less ornamentation would answer the purpose, 
and more money would be saved for missionary 
work. But many hearers are more anxious to re- 
ceive good than to do good. Reprehensible as is this 
desire when it regards only self, they can claim at 
least one example in sacred history. Micah. after 
having worked up two hundred shekels of silver into 
a "graven image and a molten image, ,? - wanted only 
a priest to officiate in his house to complete his re- 
ligious aspirations. Hence he employed, for his 
victuals, a suit of clothes and ten shekels of silver per 
year, a strolling Levite, who chanced that way in 
search of employment ; and then, with a self-gratula- 
tion so briefly felt by many a modern church after 



THE HEARER'S CALL. 145 



having called a new minister, he exclaimed. " Now 
know I that the Lord will do me good, seeing I have 
a Levite to my priest." Ah, yes. "the Lord will do 
me good !" What, pray you. is the good a minister 
can do a church on a principle so intensely selfish ? 
The enthusiasm of a false life which glows while the 
novelty of the new minister* lasts. But this novelty 
will soon wear off, and then, waking up from a pleas- 
ing enchantment, the minister may suddenly find 
himself preaching to a church shrunk back into her 
own normal state of death, from which the most ter- 
rific thunder of his eloquence cannot awaken her. 
The only real good a minister can do a church is such 
as will show itself in the hearers of the Word, while, 
like their Master, they go about healing' the sick, 
restoring eyes to the blind and unstopping the ears 
of the deaf. Failing in this, he fails in all ; and to 
save his life and influence, so endangered by contact 
with the carcass of a dead church, he may be merci- 
fully removed to a more propitious locality, where 
the expectations are more moderate and the benefits 
more healthy and enduring. For, be it known that 
the yery expectations which call a minister, when 
selfish and unreasonably high, may be the cause of his 
removal. In examining the late statistics of one of 
the leading denominations of our State. I was struck 
at seeing so many churches without pastors and ex- 
hibiting unerring signs of decay. Why is this ? Will 
the Lord remove the candlestick from a church which 
is stimulated in every good work by the instructions 
of her pastor ? A church which flares up with a 
false enthusiasm under the eloquence of sermons. 



140 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

but whose electrified hair, standing on end, falls, and 
whose every semblance of life disappears whenever 
the benediction is pronounced, is illustrated by the 
dead frog, which throws out its limbs in a variety 
of contortions when the galvanic battery is applied, 
but which, on the removal of this instrument, 
stretches them out in its own essential state of in- 
sensibility and death. But galvanic batteries were 
never made to keep dead frogs a-kicking ; nor was 
the ministry ever instituted to thrill dead churches 
with an artificial excitement. Of what use are mere 
semblances of life which vary in briskness as ser- 
mons are more or less charged with electric power, 
but which, when the current is cut, suddenly van- 
ish, leaving the church as utterly dead and as use- 
less to the community as the corpse lying cold in 
the coffin ? The producing of this effect is what the 
whole tribe of Micahs calls " doing me good." They 
are always telling you how happy they feel under 
good sermons, but are as indifferent to the duties 
they inculcate as though they were intended to stir 
up the man in the moon. Without needlessly wound- 
ing the feelings of any one, we would suggest that 
sermons are wasted on such people, and, in the exer- 
cise of divine economy, are often taken from them to 
be used in more hopeful communities, not as electri- 
zers of dead bodies, but as stimulators of such as are 
living and are ever seeking more light and more vigor 
in their noble efforts to do others good in their gen- 
eration. 

But it may be said that the opinions we are com- 
batting are obsolete. The} r may be in theory, but 



THE HEARER'S CALL. 147 

are not in spirit. We have space to notice but one 
evil, of considerable magnitude, which results from 
the notion that the ministry is the only medium of 
usefulness. This notion, of course, has been driven 
from the religious literature of the present time, but 
it still lingers in the mind as one of those secret 
propositions which, we are told, many cherish, but 
will not publicly avow. This proposition may not 
be advanced in so many words, but it nevertheless 
exists as an indwelling principle, shaping, and. solidi- 
fying, and establishing a man's whole earthly career. 
Piety, misguided by this principle, is probably driv- 
ing more incompetent men into the ministry than all 
the mercenary and other improper motives combined. 
A young man, immediately after his conversion, feels 
that he has a work to do. but by some secret impres- 
sion he identifies tin's work with the functions of the 
ministry. This conviction of duty — which, indeed, 
all Christians should feel — he receives, as does also 
the church council before which he appears for ex- 
amination, as an evidence of his call to the ministry 
— when, in fact, it is only an evidence of his conver- 
sion. I once heard a minister relate his Christian 
experience and call to the ministry. I would refer 
to him delicately, as I believe he is now in heaven, 
and would assure the reader that it is not our inten- 
tion to impeach the sincerity and usefulness of his 
career, nor to invade the sanctity of the grave, and 
drag out before the public errors which were buried 
with him and should remain with him, merely to 
gratif\ r a putrescent taste. Errors he certainly had, 
because he was human, but we may congratulate our- 



148 THE MESSENGERS OF GKRACE. 



selves if greater ones do not exist in "our own hearts 
and lives. We would refer merely to an error of his 
judgment to illustrate our subject. He said that 
after his conversion he felt that he had a work to do. 
This was as it should be ; but his error was in sup- 
posing that tills work could only be done by assum- 
ing the character of a minister. His piety was sin- 
cere, but was slightly tinged with superstition, which 
fact accounts for theniovel method he adopted to test 
the validity of his call. While riding to a camp- 
meeting, and just before he came to a road leading 
off to it, he suddenly dropped the reins, and con- 
cluded that if his horse would turn in of his own ac- 
cord, he would be convinced that he should preach 
the Gospel. He probably thought that since an in- 
visible angel with drawn sword confronted Balaam's 
ass in token of divine displeasure, another invisible 
angel with sheathed sword would gently lead on his 
ass by the reins in token of divine approval. Whether 
an angel had anything to do with an arrangement 
which he himself planned, and which was to decide, 
not whether he should go to camp, but whether he 
had a work to do, we know not ; but we do know that 
the horse went to camp and the rider subsequently 
went to preaching. We, however, find no fault with 
him for preaching, but for seeking in such an unusual 
way an evidence as to whether he had a work to do. 
Suppose his horse had traveled on, and walked into 
some person's barn-yard or stopped in front of some 
person's store, thus indicating other callings, would 
he not still have had a work to do ? That young 
men filled with the love of God should feel impressed 






THE HEARER'S CALL. 140 

with the duty of doing something to save the per- 
ishing, is quite proper ; but the notion that that 
something can only be done through the functions of 
the pulpit has wrecked the usefulness of many a sin- 
cere Christian. 

:>. The hearers, then, are under obligation to assist 
the clergy in a work implying mutual interest, and 
also to do personally all the good they can, without 
any special reference to ministerial success. The 
laity should assist the clergy, and the clergy should 
assist the laity, by informing their minds and stimu- 
lating their poAvers in every good work. Thus, if 
both departments of the Church be faithful to the 
obligations the}' are under to each other and to their 
common Master, we will have a cooperative laity. 
Having, then, established on moral grounds the 
doctrine that hearers should cooperate with minis- 
ters in saying, Come, we will in conclusion throw out 
a few hints as to how this cooperation may be secured. 

(1.) We should insist upon a converted member- 
ship. A union with Christ is necessaiy, as has been 
shown, to stimulate the Church in her several meth- 
ods of calling sinners ; and. since the Church is the 
individual multiplied, the same principle is necessary 
to produce personal activity in the vineyard of our 
Lord. This union will suddenly transform, as it 
were, by magic, the entire moral complexion of the 
soul. Such is the mechanism of the heart, that it will 
cling to something ; and. until it is induced to let go 
its hold by the superior charms of another object, it 
will cling to the world and pursue its follies with the 



150 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

most unyielding tenacity, even under the most mel- 
ancholy demonstrations of its vanities. It will not 
surrender an old affection unless another be offered 
in its place, as it instinctively recoils from a state of 
cheerless desolation. A union with Christ furnishes 
the necessary substitution. It realizes the alchemy 
which turns metal into gold, by suddenly effecting a 
transformation of man's whole moral nature. By 
expelling an old occupant it does not desolate the 
heart, but it substitutes for the world the one alto- 
gether lovely, who brings along with him into the 
soul a set of new thoughts, new desires and new 
motives. Now the affections grasp and entwine 
around the Saviour as tenaciously as they formerly 
did around the world, and freely enter into full sym- 
pathy with all that he proposes to do for perishing 
sinners. Old thoughts and desires now lose their 
ascendency, and are succeeded by new ones of a more 
elevating character. Self, the reigning tyrant of the 
bosom, is now dethroned, and the love of God is re- 
stored to its proper place as the supreme and con- 
trolling power of the soul. In short, the hearer 
realizes in this blessed union that " old things are 
passed away," and that " all things are become new." 
He wakens up into a new life, and is impelled by 
new impulses in the pursuit of new gratifications. 
Now " the love of Christ constraineth him " to seek 
with invincible energy the salvation of souls. Im- 
pelled by the Spirit of Christ, nothing but a want of 
opportunity can restrain him from sajdng, Come. 

(2.) We should place a responsibility upon even- 
member of the Church, This will strengthen him. 



THE HEARER'S (\ii. t.M 



as heavy pieces of timber placed on the slinky frame 
of a building will brace it. The consciousness of be- 
ing useful will stimulate a soul glowing with holy 
desires, and will cheer it on to still greater accom- 
plishments. The Sabbath-school, and the several 
benevolent enterprises belonging to a live and pro- 
gressive Church, afford ample employment for every 
member. Laymen should also exercise their talents 
in the conference and prayer-meetings. These meet- 
ings belong to them as truly as private devotions, 
and should be conducted by them for their general 
improvement. It is true, the minister should, as 
often as he can, meet with his brethren in these 
social assemblies — not in his clerical stiffness, but on 
a common footing with others, and should mingle his 
prayers with theirs for the outpouring of the Holy 
Spirit upon the Church and the community. But the 
responsibility of these meetings should rest on the 
members. The Methodist Episcopal Church, though 
having had at the commencement of our national his- 
tory but a meagre existence, is now one of the 
largest, if not the largest. Protestant denomination 
in our country. How can we account for this re- 
markable growth in Christendom ? I do not think 
that I misrepresent this respectable body of Chris- 
tians by stating that a principal element of her suc- 
cess is her admirable method of emptying the tal- 
ents of her membership. The aggregate power thus 
developed is stupendous, which is still further in- 
creased by the opportunity thus afforded the pulpit 
to select workmen from the best material in the 
Church. As the members improve the}' are pro- 



152 THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 



moted ; and whenever a young man exhibits talents 
suited to the ministry he is urged to employ them 
for the good of others, and at the same time is put 
on a course of theological study. Thus, by combin- 
ing talent, practice and culture in her candidates for 
the sacred office, she is furnishing the world with a 
body of ministers second to none in earnestness and 
true eloquence. This method of supplying the pul- 
pit is not so liable to miscarry as when churches de- 
pend almost entirely upon the schools for their 
ministers. A man, for instance, may have three sons ; 
he devotes the one to law, another to medicine and 
the third to divinity. But with all his sagacity he 
may make mistakes in selecting callings for his chil- 
dren, and may ;t give them stones instead of bread 
and serpents instead of fish." The reverend son may. 
indeed, pass successfully through the ordeal of 
scientific and theological training; but. not having 
had an opportunity to show what nature has done for 
him, his success is altogether problematical With 
all his culture he may still, for the want of natural 
gifts, fail, or may represent the pulpit only in its 
effeminac^y. The Methodist Church can now claim 
as many efficient schools as any _of the denomina- 
tions distinguished for their educational zeal ; but 
we hope that, while she is affording her young men 
increased facilities for mental culture, she will not 
abandon the good old method of discovering and im- 
proving talent through a working laity ; for this 
method has been approved by the Divine blessing, 
and has contributed to the world a most living, stir- 
ring and eloquent body of ministers. 



I III. III. VREH B CALL. !•>- 



(.'>.) Every church should make organized efforts 
to evangelize the community. A committee should 
be appointed for this special purpose, and should ho 
selected with reference to the localities to he can- 
vassed. The Church should furnish this committee 
with religious tracts and other assistance necessary 
to increase its influence. Every member of this 
committee should secure the cooperation of every 
Christian living in his respective district, and should 
superintend arrangements to have every sinner living 
in the same visited and personally exhorted to seek 
an interest in the cleansing blood of Christ. Stated 
meetings should be appointed to hear reports of suc- 
cess, and to discuss topics relating to this important 
work. O how the hearing of these reports would fire 
the minister with a fresh zeal, which would show 
itself in more pointed and powerful appeals to the 
ungodly! Besides, learning in this way the moral 
condition of the community, lie would know better 
how to season his sermons to the wants of the peo- 
ple, thus giving them an increased unction and 
power. Also, at these meetings, topics relating to 
evangelical work should be discussed. A ministerial 
friend informs me that at his young men's prayer- 
meeting he proposes questions such as the following. 
to be answered : •' How would you answer a sinner 
who says he has time enough yet to become a Chris- 
tian V " How would you answer a sinner who says 
he is already as good as church members ?" This 
certainly is an excellent plan to prepare these young 
men to say, Come, to their unconverted companions. 
Questions of this kind will evoke an interchange of 



IS I THE MESSENGERS OF GRACE. 

thought which* will enable them in an intelligent way 
to meet all objections against an immediate and 
hearty acceptance of salvation. 

(4.) Lastly, ministers should preach to their peo- 
ple such sermons as will excite benevolent feelings, 
and will arouse all the energies of the soul to work 
for the rescue and elevation of fallen sinners. I can- 
not restrain the indignation I feel for those divines 
who employ their talents in the vain attempt to dive 
into the mind of Deity and unravel the enigmas of 
his counsels, and who will expose themselves to de- 
position from their respective churches for ad- 
vancing theories, not only heterodox, but of no 
practical bearing, when their services are so much 
needed to kindle in every hearer's heart a llame of 
compassion for the heedless multitude rushing, be- 
fore their eyes, to destruction. The} T are interpreting 
divine plans, when they ought to be interpreting 
Christian duties ; they are pointing out the part they 
think God is acting, or will act, in his administra- 
tion, when they ought to be pointing out the fearful re- 
sponsibilities resting on man and the fearful part his 
persistent rebellion will compel him to suffer under 
this administration. We are not responsible for the 
plans and doings of Jehovah ; we are not responsible 
for the precise time and manner of the second ad- 
vent of Christ, for the precise condition of the soul 
immediately after death, nor for the precise nature 
and extent of the punishment awaiting the finally 
impenitent. But we are responsible for the employ- 
ment of our gifts and opportunities in elevating the 
social and religious condition of man. This every 
minister should teach his hearers. 



THE BRIDE'S (ALL. 1V> 



May the Holy Spirit be abundantly poured out 
upon the laymen of the Church universal. We in- 
voke this blessing- especially upon the members of 
this church, which is yet in its infancy, which has 
new responsibilities arising from its new condition, 
and. therefore, needs special quickening influences of 
the Spirit. May the principles their pastor is so 
anxious to establish as the basis of their success be 
so studied and improved that, when the Lord comes 
to make up his jewels, they may have many stars 
added to their crowns of rejoicing. 



THE QUALIFICATIONS OF THOSE WHOSE PRIVI- 
LEGE IT IS TO COME. 



After having gazed with admiration on the Foun- 
tain of Life, we then, with an interest intensified by 
its inherent excellencies, contemplated the magnifi- 
cent agencies at work in bringing it to the notice of 
a famishing world. Here we found that the Spirit, 
the Chief Messenger of grace, is ever arousing in the 
soul those dormant faculties necessaiy to perceive 
the beauties of the Gospel; that the Church, the 
Lamb's wife, impelled by the strongest affections, is 
ever proclaiming the glory uf her Beloved and sup- 
plying the mind with those truths which the Spirit 
reveals to the heart ; and that the hearer, having 
satiated his thirst at this Fountain, is ever recom- 
mending to those in quest of happiness the same 
sovereign relief that afforded his own soul such re- 
freshment. We now return to sinners, whom we had 
almost forgotten while contemplating the genial in- 
fluences, the heroic labors and the grand achievements, 
of the Church, both in her organized capacity and 
in her individual efforts. The remaining space of 
this work shall be employed in explaining the quali- 
fications necessary to a participation of this grace 
and the fearful import of its refusal. AVe will then 
notice briefly — 

III. The qualifications for grace : " Let him that is 
athirst come; and whosoever will, let him take of the 



THE QUALIFICATIONS FOB GRACE. L57 

water of life freely." By relieving- the first clause of 
its metaphor, we are taught in plain language that a 
desire for Christ and a willingness to accept him are 

the true conditions of salvation. 

The term qualification, when used to denote a fit- 
ness for grace, is looked upon with suspicion, as it 
seems to suggest some kind of merit as the basis of 
saving benefits, thus neutralizing the idea of grace in 
the idea of reward. A fitness for certain benefits 
may, however, be based on adaptation as well as on 
merit. In this sense Ave nse the term qualification in 
relation to those saving benefits which the sovereign 
grace of God bestows on us. If we must understand 
it hi the other sense, then, indeed, the best qualifica- 
tion we can have for grace is to feel in a most 
sincere and harrowing way that we have no qualifica- 
tions whatever. Then the best thing we can do is to 
go to Jesus, exclaiming : 

' ' Should my tears forever flow, 
Should my zeal no languor know ; 
This for sin conld not atone — 
Thou must save, and thou alone ; 
In my hand no price I bring, 
Simply to thy cross I cling. " 

In order to relieve the conditions of salvation 
specified in the text of the slightest taint of suspicion 
that the}' contain meritorious qualities, it may here 
be stated that the}^ themselves are imparted by grace, 
and that, therefore, the benefits which follow them 
are also of grace and not of merit. But we may be 
told that this view would obliterate in all finite 



L58 THE < v >i AXIFICATION6 FOB GRACE. 

actions the idea of merit ; that our natural faculties 
are also of grace, because it is absurd to suppose 
that we could have done any thing before our creation 
to merit these endowments; and that, therefore, the 

knowledge we secure, the fortunes we accumulate, 
and the reputations we establish by their exercise, 
could not, on this principle, be claimed as the several 
rewards of our own personal worth. In a strict theo- 
logical sense, this is true. God empowers us. by a 
mercy we could not deserve, to secure all our com- 
forts. Still, the case here proposed is not analogous 
to the one under consideration. Our intellectual 
powers were not prostrated by the fall. They act 
freely under a constitution which remains unim- 
paired, and do not depend on a special appliance of 
divine power to arouse them and set them agoing in 
working out beneficial results. Though these results 
follow the exercise of faculties which God of his own 
free grace gave us in creation and constantly upholds 
by a kind providence, yet they follow these faculties 
in a natural way. and may be called blessings of 
nature. Had our moral powers never been pros- 
trated by sin. the}" would act as freebv as our intellec- 
tual ; a constant communion with our Maker would 
follow their exercise as naturally as anything achieA^ed 
by our mental efforts ; and no distinction would exist 
between universal and special grace, as both the mind 
and the heart would act freely under their respective 
constitutions, unimpaired in their operations. Then 
the analogy would be complete. But in our lapsed 
state, those spiritual faculties necessary to perceive 
the terrific majesty of the law and the superlative 



REPENT W( I. AND FAITH, I.Y.I 

excellency of the Gospel must be aroused by a divine 
power, which the sovereign, special grace of God im- 
parts to the soul. Then, our gracious desires and the 
bias of our wills to the Fountain of Life, as they 
depend on our spiritual perceptions, are gifts of 
God's distinguishing mercy. "The natural man un- 
derstands not the things of the Spirit of God, neither 
<-nu he know them, because they are spiritually dis- 
cerned." There is also a meritorious connection 
between our natural faculties and the benefits they 
secure ; that is, they are the procuring cause of these 
benefits. But there is no such connection between 
the means and the bestowment of grace. As was 
stated before in relation to prayer, the atonement of 
Christ alone is the procuring cause of salvation. It 
alone can offer God an equivalent for the exercise of 
his mercy, and can claim his approbation on the 
basis of merit. If it he stated that this view destroys 
grace and makes the bestowment of divine favor a 
simple act of equity, it may be said in reply that 
it was the boundless love of God which sent his son 
into the world to make an atonement for sin ; and 
that, therefore, while his justice is maintained in all 
its integrity, his mercy planned, completed and 
superintends the system of redemption. Man. on the 
other hand, can merit nothing but the fearful penalty 
of the law he has broken. 

Hence these conditions of grace can have no merit, 
as they were mercifully wrought in the soul, and as 
they possess in themselves no procuring power. Yet 
they are qualifications with which man may be saved, 
but without which he cannot be saved. How these 



160 THE QUALIFICATIONS FOB GRACE. 



qualifications, having in themselves no merit, are 
still prerequisites to salvation, may be illustrated by 
the metaphor couched in the scriptural passage intro- 
duced at the beginning of this discussion. Benevo- 
lence lias opened there a fountain made free for all. 
What qualifications do you suppose a man must 
have to partake of its refreshment ? Common sense 
will answer, an appetite enabling him to drink with 
a relish and a suitable propension of his will. The 
one adapts him and the other carries him to this 
fountain. Suppose he had been created without this 
appetite — then the very means of maintaining his 
earthly existence would have brought it to a speed}' 
termination. If we were compelled to supply the 
natural waste of our bodies by a nourishment for 
which we had no relish, and to call up in mind the 
regular demands of life by a kind of schedule used 
in place of those eager desires which are always 
m prompt in reminding us of our daily wants, we would 
prefer death to an existence maintained on such con- 
ditions. A life void of all relish would soon end 
through sheer neglect. what an evidence does 
God afford us of his benevolence toward his crea- 
tures in so adapting their bodies to the conditions of 
life that the exercise of those organs concerned in 
their sustenance are attended with most pleasurable 
sensations ! A suitable disposition of this man's will 
is also an essential fitness for this fountain. If he 
will not, he cannot drink. Whatever may be its cele- 
brated virtues, if he will not go to it he cannot par- 
take of its refreshment. Hence an obstinate will is 
an insurmountable barrier between him and the relief 



REPENTANCE AND FAITH. H'»1 

bo mercifully offered. Now substitute for this fountain 
the rich provisions of grace; for the natural appe- 
tite, the gracious desires awakened in the heart, and 
for the will leading to this fountain, the will leading 
to this grace. Then you will see the analogy ; then 
you will see how a desire for Christ and a willingness 
to accept him are essential qualifications for salvation. 
But, to return to this fountain, the conditions on 
which its benefits are ottered contain no merit. There 
is certainly no merit in mere desire. A man cannot, 
by simply desiring a farm, establish his claims to a 
farm. Desire indicates a susceptibility of enjoying 
that fountain, but not a right of possessing it, and 
must be gratified on a principle of pure benevolence. 
Xor is a resolve to go to that fountain meritorious, 
(rood resolutions may have lifg> in them, but no 
recompense for favors received. The benefaction you 
bestowed on that beggar was not transformed into a 
just due by the circumstance that, after much hesi- 
tancy, he resolved to go and beg your assistance. 
The prodigal son had been reduced to an utter state 
of destitution before he resolved to arise and goto 
his father. There was life in that resolution, but no 
compensation for the patrimony squandered, the 
home desolated and the parental heart prostrated by 
sorrow and shame. The shoes, the robe, the ring 
and the commotion over the fatted calf were only 
pleasurable demonstrations;' not that an injury had 
been repaired and former pleasures restored to a 
desolated home ; not that manly integrity and recog- 
nized worth had returned in the person of a lost son 
to heal the heart of a parent stricken with anguish. 



162 THE QUALIFICATIONS FOR -GRACE. 

to bestow on him honor and comfort in his declining 
clays, and, like Joseph, to smooth his pillow and close 
Ids eyes in a tranquil death — but that a poor, filthy, 
ragged and diseased spendthrift, who was supposed 
to have died of excessive indulgence in vice, had re- 
turned to his compassionate father, who, with a joy 
so mingled with the love of pity as to be rather called 
sorrow in a cheerful mood that the work of destruc- 
tion had not been completed, exclaimed, " Let us eat 
and be merry ; for this my son was dead and is alive 
again, he was lost and is found. 1 ' This parental joy 
did not arise from the dissipation of wrongs, but was 
like a mitigated beam of the sun which brightens 
the day — not by emerging from behind a passing 
clond, but by penetrating through it as it obstinately 
hangs over the earth. In this resolve, this arising 
and this going to an injured father, there was cer- 
tainly no merit, though there was in them life for an 
undeserving young man. what merit can there be 
in the mere resolutions of sinners, who, after having 
discovered their utter ruin and helplessness by 
nature, seek in God's appointed way the salvation of 
their souls ! Their application at a throne of grace 
exhibits no other qualities than those belonging to a 
beggar, who appeals to the benevolence of the com- 
munity for a subsistence. As God gave in creation 
the natural appetite which longs for the refreshment 
of that fountain and also* the propension of the will 
which bends to it a personal application, so lie 
awakens in the soul gracious desires and correspond- 
ing volitions by the energy of the Holy Spirit. Hence 
you see how a desire for Christ and a willingness to 



i;i i'l.Vl \N( I. \M> I \l I II. IGS 

accept him are necessary qualifications for salvation ; 
and how, at the same time, they cannot include any- 
thing incompatible with the idea of sovereign grace. 

These conditions include all the elements of evan- 
gelical repentance and faith. Sinners thirst for re- 
generation only when the Spirit discovers to them 
the enormity and fatality of their ti'ansgressions. In 
their impenitencv. "their souls are delightfully lost 
and bewildered in a pleasing delusion, " if we may 
use Addison's expression in relation to other decep- 
tions of nature. Their consciences are easy and their 
desires sensual, because everything in the moral 
world wears a false coloring. They are like a man 
who. in the delirium of disease, imagines himself 
amassing a fortune, or swaying an empire, or rolling 
in luxury, but who. when the fever is broken, finds 
that he is lying on a couch emaciated and so pros- 
trated as to be unable to raise his head. St. Paul, in 
speakino- of the law as the instrument which dissi- 
pates this delusion, says : * ; For I was alive without 
the law once ; but when the commandment came, sin 
revived, and I died." could sinners but see them- 
selves as they really are. in a state of separation 
from God : could they but see the enormity of their 
guilt as it despises the goodness of their Maker and 
defies his authority ; could they but see that the 
streams of their actions are corrupted at the foun- 
tain, and that they are unable to free themselves 
from their sins, which are ever before their eyes, and 
ever threatening them with the just and fearful pen- 
alty of the law — then, indeed, would the}' be covered 



Hi I v I HE Qt Al.ll'K A [ /in ns FOB <-i: \< E. 



with shame and confusion, would they confess their 
transgressions without offering a single palliating 
plea, and earnestly would they desire forgiveness and 
the establishment of holy principles in the heart, 
without which it would as certainly be under cor- 
rupting passions as the body, deprived of the principle 
of life, is under the laws of chemical decomposition. 
Well, the spirit infuses into the soul sufficient light 
to make these discoveries, lie illuminates the law, 
brings ont in strong colors the holiness and majesty 
of God, and gives a most loatliesome view of man's 
native depravity. The sinner quails under these 
revelations, his false hopes and presumptuous 
daring now die. and he finds himself a disconsolate 
wretch, standing on a barren heath, thirsting for the 
water of life. David felt fmt little remorse and sor- 
row for several months after his enormous transgres- 
sions ; but " when the commandment came" with a 
convincing power by the mouth of Nathan. "sin re- 
vived, and he died." His heart sunk under a sense 
of guilt in proportion as his sins rose in magnitude 
before the eyes of his conscience. His shame was 
most deep and lacerating, his .confessions were most 
humble and ingenuous, and his supplications for for- 
giveness and a clean heart were most sincere and im- 
portunate. He poured his penetential feelings into 
a psalm, which he gave to the chief musician to be 
sung in the church for the benefit of poor penitents 
in every age. who can read the fifty-first psalm 
without being moved by the self-abasement and 
earnest cries of this distinguished penitent, who 
threw himself wholly on the mercy of God. whom he 



i;i ■ i-i \ i w l \M> i ■ \\ I ii 



so grievously offended ! It proceeds in the following 
plaintive strain : " Have mercy upon me, O God, ac- 
cording to thy loving kindness; according unto the 
multitude of thy tender mercies, blol out my trans- 
gressions. Wash me thoroughly from mine iniquity 
and cleanse me from my sin. For I acknowledge my 
transgressions, and my sin is ever before me. Against 
thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in 
thy sight. * * Behold I was shapen in iniquity, 
and in sin did my mother conceive me. * * Purge 
me with hyssop, and I shall be clean ; wash me, and 
I shall be whiter than snow. Make me to hear joy 
and gladness, that the bones thou hast broken may 
rejoice. Hide thy faee from my sins, and blot out 
all mine iniquities. Create in me a clean heart. 
God, and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me 
not away from thy presence, and take not thy Holy 
Spirit from me." Such were the pleadings of his 
soul in anguish. Then it is evident that a sincere 
desire for salvation, viewed in connection with the 
principles which produce it, contains all the essential 
elements of evangelical repentance. 

In like manner, a willingness to go to Christ prac- 
tically includes all the elements of saving faith. We 
have no space to discuss the metaphysical questions 
that here may arise, and must be satisfied with but a 
few cursory observations. The power of willing be- 
longs to all responsible beings. The very nature of 
this faculty supposes it to be influenced by motives, 
and not by the laws of necessity. Desire, as it arises 
from a sense of want, most powerfully prompts the 
will in choosing the requisite relief. But this desire 



[66 THE \>i ALM' i< \ I tofts I <ri; f:i:\< i,. 

may exist in all its intensity, and the power of 
volition will continue to present an obstinate and un- 
yielding front to the offers of grace, unless it be 
brought into submission by the operation of other 
principles. What other principles ? Still using for 
illustration the metaphor of our text, a man may 
have a desire for the refreshments of that fountain. 
but he doubts the credibility of those who proclaim 
it; he doubts its celebrated virtues, or he doubts 
that he may there drink without money and price, 
and has misgivings as to his own competency to pur- 
chase a right. Whatever may be his desire in the 
case, these doubts will obstruct the exercise of the 
will in making a suitable choice. But remove them ; 
then a belief in the credibility of the messengers, in 
the virtues of the fountain, and in its accessibility, 
united with an intense thirst, will so act on the will 
that a personal application to this source of pleasure 
will follow as a natural consequence. Hence, a wil- 
lingness to go to Christ includes all the essential 
elements- of saving faith. Then repentance and faith 
are the qualifications for grace. 

sinner, tidings of great joy have reached your 
ears. A fountain has been opened in the house of 
David for sin and uncleanness. It is made available 
by messengers who are proclaiming its freeness and 
its efficacy. It is offered on conditions most clearly 
defined. I)o } t ou have these qualifications ? Do you 
abhor your sins ? Do you desire forgiveness, an ap- 
proving conscience, a reconciled Father in heaven, 
an upholding arm on earth, a tranquil death and a 
meetness for joj^s beyond the tomb? Then 3^011 are 



REPENTANCE AND FAITH. "" 



invited. " Let him that is athirst come." But I fear 

I am unfit to go to Christ ! Unfit to go to Christ, 

when . ,, 

•• All the titness lie requiretn 

1^ to feel your need of him '■" 
But 1 Tear that I have persisted in my sins so long 
that there is do mercy for me ! I fear that my sins 
are so enormous that there is no efficacy in the blood 
of Christ for them! I even fear sometimes that 1 
am not included in God's purposes of Grace ! Your 
doubts may all be summed up under the head of un- 
belief. You are guilty of the greatest imprudency in 
staying from Christ because you suspect that you are 
not included in the number of God's elect! There 
are other things besides the salvation of bis elect 
which God has fore-ordained. He has fore-ordained 
that a large number of people shall this night die. 
Suppose von take ill. You may be included in this 
number ; 'and if so. all the medical virtues in the uni- 
verse cannot save you. Will you. then, refuse to 
send for a physician? God has fore-ordained that 
some people shall remain poor. You may be in- 
cluded in this number. Will you. then, make no ef- 
fort to accumulate a fortune. It may be that God 
has fore-ordained that certain portions of the earth 
shall be visited with a famine the coming year. W ill 
you. then, fold your arms and say. " God hath fore- 
ordained whatsoever comes to pass." and there is no 
use in my trying to cover fields which may be laid 
waste by an unalterable decree ? Do you reason thus 
in relation to your secular interests ?• 0. no ! Here 
you arc most prudent in guarding against temporal 



108 THE QUALIFICATIONS FOB GBACE. 

calamities, although your most faithful use of means 
may miscarry. You may send for a physician, and 
still die. You may work hard, and still live in pov- 
erty. You may cultivate your fields, and still reap 
no harvest. It is not so, however, when } t ou faith- 
fully use the means of salvation. The purposes of 
grace include the means of grace. The purposes do 
not take one direction and the means another. If 
you will go to Christ you may go to Christ. " Whoso- 
ever will, let him take the water of life freely." The 
Arminian, as well as the Calvinist, will tell you that 
without the conditions of grace you cannot be saved. 
The Calvinist. as well as the Arminian, will tell you 
that with the conditions of grace you shall most cer- 
tainly be saved. O do you not, then, act impru- 
dently in bracing yourself up into an attitude of 
refusal, because, peradventure, you may not belong 
to God's elect ? Should you not " make your calling 
and election sure " by diligently using the means of 
grace ? If 3011 do this, you shall not miss heaven ; 
• ; for so an entrance shall be ministered unto you 
abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord 
and Saviour Jesus Christ." 

Do you still hesitate .? What do you think of that 
man dying in yonder desert, who hesitates as mes- 
sengers, one after another, are going to him. saying : 
"just a few rods ahead is a most beautiful spring — 
come, drink and live ?" That man represents you in 
your hesitancy. you are perishing ! But there is 
a fountain. It is there — not to distress you. as the 
sight of an unattainable good distresses those who 
are hopelessly longing for it, but it is there to save 



REPENTANCE AND V Mill. Ili'.l 

you. The Spirit goes to yon and says, Come. The 
Church, including saints on earth and saints in 
Ilea von, goes to you and says. Come. The hearer. 
having refreshed his own soul at this fountain, and 
being able to recommend its saving power, goes to 
you and says. Come. () be careful lest your hesi- 
tancy terminate in absolute refusal. 

() do you refuse? think that in this decision 
there is a choice as well as a refusal. You choose 
death and refuse life ; you choose endless misery and 
refuse endless happiness. Do you not know that in 
refusing God's richest blessings you incur the ad- 
ditional crime of despising the mercy of heaven so 
freely poured out upon a sinful world ? The nature 
of this additional crime you will learn in the follow- 
ing discussion of the sin against the Holy Ghost. 
Give, then, your undivided attention to the awful 
import of a determined and persistent refusal of 
grace. 



THE REFUSAL: OR, THE NATURE OF THE SIN 
AGAINST THE HOLY GHOST. 



"Wherefore I say unto you, all manner of sin and blas- 
phemy shall he forgiven unto men. but the blasphemy 
against the Holy Ghost shall not he forgiven unto men. And 
whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of Man, it shall 
be forgiven him ; but whosoever speaketh against the Holy 
Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, 
neither in the world to come." — Matt. xii. 31, 32. 

That there are mysteries in the Bible is evident 
from the fact that it is a revelation from God. Had 
God revealed to man all the facts and all the reasons 
of the facts in relation to his own essence, works and 
providence, he would have made man omniscient, 
which he could not have done without destroying his 
own sovereignty. It is evident, then, that many truths 
in relation to God lie beyond the limits of revelation, 
and must remain in mystery. This fact, however, 
will not appty to those truths relating to the duty 
of man. The very nature of such truths implies the 
necesshy of their being understood. 

WHAT IS THE UNPARDONABLE STN ? A PRACTICAL 

QUESTION. 

Of this nature is the truth of our text. It evi- 
dently involves the questions of human obligation 
and human happiness, and is, therefore, a legitimate 
topic of inquiry. If my happiness and doom may be- 
come involved in this terrible denunciation of our Sa- 



HE REFtJSAl "i (.K \< I.. I ' 1 



dour should I not know the precise nature of the sin 
so strongly denounced? Why should we keep hands 
()ir . and allow this passage of Scripture to be fenced 
around in a small comer of the territory of revealed 
truth as a mere question of speculation, to fill the 
hearts of many timid and pious persons with an inde- 
finable and groundless terror? Should we not 
rather bring it out, tear from it its mysterious garb, 
throw upon it the light of the Gospel and put it to a 
practical use ? Many truly pious and humble per- 
sons have been greatly annoyed, have been deprived 
of the comforts of religion and brought even to the 
brink of despair by this passage of Scripture. Should 
they not have their apprehensions allayed by know- 
ing the precise nature of the unpardonable sin? 
Again, there are many rapidly traveling to that point 
beyond which there is no forgiveness, who. if they 
but knew the nature of this sin. might take warning 
in time and be saved. It is. therefore, a question of 
practical importance, and as such, there is a reason 
why it should not remain in mystery. We have in 
view your spiritual improvement in discussing the 
nature of the unpardonable sin. 

IT TS NOT A RARE ACT OF TRANSGRESSION. 

The sin. against the Holy Ghost is not some rare 
and monstrous act of iniquity, peculiar to the perse- 
cuting Jews who witnessed the miraculous power of 
our Saviour; nor in our own day is it only to be 
met with in a few solitary instances of enormous and 
inexpiable transgression. In the first clause of our 
text our blessed Saviour says, "All manner of sin 



172 THE REFUSAL OF GRACE. 

and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men. but the 
blasphemy against the Holy Ghost," etc. Observe 
the unconditional positiveness of the clause, "All 
manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto 

men." Now, it* the "blasphemy against the Holy 
Ghost "is some rare and monstrous transgression, 
the logical conclusion is that few shall finally be lost. 
But this conclusion does not harmonize with the 
other teachings of the New Testament. Our Saviour 
teaches us that those who are o*oino- to heaA^en are 
but few, when compared with those who are going to 
hell. 4i Enter ye in at the strait gate ; for wide is the 
gate and broad is the way that leadeth to destruc- 
tion, and many there be which go in thereat ; be- 
cause strait is the gate and narrow is the way which 
leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it." 
We are taught that all sins are unpardonable with- 
out a coming to Christ, and that every sin is pardon- 
able, however vile in character, if the person who in- 
curred it make a personal application to Christ by 
repentance and faith. We must, therefore, tear from 
this sin that peculiar aspect with which it is invested 
and clothe it with a more general character. We 
must also cease to regard those Pharisees whose 
conduct called forth this denunciation of our Saviour 
as maintaining an attitude of mind different from 
that maintained by very, very many in our own day. 

IT IS NOT THE MERE ACT OF SPEAKING AGAINST 
THE SPIRIT. 

This sin does not consist in the outward act of 
" speaking against the Holy Ghost. " Here again 



THE MN AGAINST THE HOLY GHOST. 173 

our interpretation oi' this passage must harmonize 
with other tads in the New Testament. The Holy 
Ghost was associated with the *• Sou of Man" in his 
wonderful miraculous achievements. The blasphemy 
uttered against Christ was equally uttered against 
the Spirit. Who, then, of the persecuting Jews of 
that day could have been saved ? Not one. Vet 
many of them were saved. Christ interceded for the 
vilest of his persecutors, many of whom repented 
and were converted. Paul was a blasphemer; and 
though his persecutions of the early Christians were 
carried on soon after the day of Pentecost and under 
the immediate dispensation of the Spirit, yet he ob- 
tained mercy, and reversed the force of his influence 
in defense of the same cause against which he shortly 
before breathed out u threatenings and slau ghter.' 
We must, therefore, abandon the idea as inconsistent 
with the recorded facts of the New Testament, that 
the unpardonable sin consists in the mere act of 
speaking against the Holy Ghost. Wicked and dan- 
gerous as this is. the bridge may not yet be burned 
down upon which the sinner may travel to Christ and 
to heaven. 

It is true that blasphemy is calumny or detraction. 
reproachful or abusive language uttered against fie- 
hovah. It is also true that it is upon the outward 
act of speaking on the part of the Pharisees that our 
Saviour uttered this remarkable denunciation. But 
he tells us, in a subsequent verse, that out of the 
abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. It was. 
therefore, the attitude of their hearts in relation to 
the Holy Ghost that called forth this denunciation, 



174 THE REFUSAL OF GRACE. 



IT IS AN OBSTINATE RESISTANCE OF THE HEART TO 
THE INFLUENCES OF THE SPIRIT. 

What, then, is this sin? We have already extri- 
cated it from those limits which would confine it to 
the hostility of those Jews to whom the language of 
our text was directed. . We have already shown that 
it is no rare phenomenon of depravity ; we have 
already brought it down as a sin of general preva- 
lence in our own day. It is, therefore, a live ques- 
tion, a practical question, a question in which you 
and I are deeply interested— what is that sin for 
which there is no forgiveness, " neither in this world, 
neither in the world to come?" Throwing upon it 
all the light of reason and Scripture we can com- 
mand—harmonizing it with the teachings of Christ 
and his Apostles, and bringing it within the opera- 
tions of the general and well-defined law that wjll 
exclude the finally impenitent from the " inheritance 
of the saints of light"— we must conclude that this 
sin is nothing more nor less than an obstinate atti- 
tude of the soul in relation to the Holy Spirit, car- 
ried to such a degree of persistency that the con- 
science no longer plies the sinner with its admo- 
nitions, and that he is given over to judicial and 
irrevocable hardness of heart. Receive this as the 
proper definition of the unpardonable sin, and you 
will have a principle that will lead you through the 
mazes of this and similar dark and hidden passages ; 
that will infuse the comforting influences of the 
Gospel into your hearts, whichwere sometimes under 
a cloud of anxiety, and that will teach you the impor- 



I II I ! SIS IGAINS1 l HE HOLY UHOS I . 175 



tance of cherishing the tender admonitions of an en- 
lightened conscience. This, then, brings us to discuss 

IV. The Refusal of Grace. Having developed, 
from the circumstances in the case, the doctrine our 
Saviour has taught in the text, we shall now eluci- 
date it by arguments drawn from the fact that the 
Holy spirit is specialized as the object of the unpar- 
donable sin; from the analogy that would explain 
the reasonableness of such specialty, and from the 
peculiar relation we sustain to the Third person in 
the Holy Trinity. 

1. Our first argument, then, will be drawn from 
the fact that, as the object of the unpardonable sin, 

SPEOIAL MENTION IS MADE OF THE SPIRIT. 

Why is it that an attitude of hostility in relation 
to the Holy Spirit may be unpardonable when it is 
not in relation to the Father or the Son ? Is he not 
the Third Person in the Trinity ? Are not all the 
divine attributes ascribed to him ? Is lie not an ob- 
ject of supreme worship ? Is he not associated with the 
Father and the Son in creative acts, in the preserva- 
tion of all things, in the inspiration of the prophets, 
in the formula of baptism, and in the apostolic bene- 
diction ? Are not his personality and deity proven 
with the same clearness as any other doctrine of our 
holy religion ? Why. then, is not a sin committed 
against him equally committed against the other 
persons in the Godhead? Can we make the Holy 
Ghost an exclusive object of an unpardonable hos- 



176 the Refusal of grace. 



tility without severing his connection with the divine 
essence, and thus destroying the glorious doctrine of 
the trinity and substituting polytheism in its stead ? 
Is not the Son equal, though not superior to the 
Spirit in holiness ? Why, then, is a sin committed 
against the one less enormous than a sin of the same 
character commited against the other? Or, in other 
words, why is it that " whosoever speaketh against 
the Son of Man, it shall be forgiven him. but whoso- 
ever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not 
be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the 
world to come V 

Admitting, for the present, that these questions 
are inexplicable, there need be no doubt in reference 
to the fact itself and its necessary logical conclusion. 
Many facts fall within the limits of revelation as es- 
sential articles of faith, while the reasons upon 
which tlie}^ are based are excluded as unnecessary 
information. We have a notable illustration of this 
principle in the doctrine of the Trinity itself. Though 
we cannot explain hoiv three persons are united in 
one Godhead, the doctrine itself has never been con- 
tradicted by any demonstration of truth or testimony 
of our senses. It is one of those incomprehensible 
doctrines which lie above, but do not contradict 
human reason; and we receive it as an article of our 
faith, not because we can explain it, but because we 
can prove it b} r the emphatic declarations of Scrip- 
ture. Then, even supposing we cannot comprehend 
how the third person in the divine unity can be 
specialized as an object of hostility, and how hos- 
tility, only in this relation, can be carried to such a 



* THE SIN AGAINST THE HOLY GHOST. 177 

degree of enormity as to be brought under the fiat of 
an irrevocable wrath, we cannot, at least, contradict 
this so long as we cannot contradict the doctrine of 
the trinity, and must, therefore, admit it upon the 
declaration of him who has so distinctly pointed to 
the Holy Spirit as the object of the unpardonable sin. 
But what does this fact, in all its absoluteness, 
prove ? Though at present we may not be able to as- 
sign for it a reason, we must nevertheless admit its 
sequence ; namely, that the unpardonable sin is no 
act of transgression. Ransack the whole code of 
moral laws, and 3^ou will not find a single command 
which was not enacted by the Sovereign of the uni- 
verse for the regulation of his government. When 
either of these laws are broken, he, without any 
special reference to the third person in the Trinity, 
becomes the object of hostility. But the unpardon- 
able sin is an offense against the Holy Spirit. As no 
actual transgression can have this specific relation, 
this sin must, therefore, be a rebellious state or con- 
dition of the soul in relation to the Spirit's influence. 
How this hostile condition of the heart may become 
an unpardonable offense is not necessary for us to 
know in our present stage of investigation. Though 
we may shortly give a reason for this, at present it 
is enough to know that such is the fact. 

ARGUMENT DRAWN FROM ANALOGY. 

2. But there is another view we may take of this 
subject, in which this delicate question may be ex- 
plained by analogy. There is a reason w T hy the 
Spirit may be pointed out as a special object of hos- 



178 THE REFUSAL OF GRACE. 

tilit}', and this reason involves the nature of this sin, 
and carries with it a reason why it may become un- 
pardonable. There is a very nice distinction be- 
tween a sin committed against the essence and a sin 
committed against the office work of the Holy 
Ghost. The civil law recognizes a similar distinction 
in our social relations. An insult or an act of vio- 
lence is punished with a heavier penalty when com- 
mitted against the official character of an individual 
than when it is committed against Jiis personal char- 
acter. But we will introduce another analogy more 
to the point. Suppose two persons in a state of 
alienation to each other, and that the one pursues 
the other with a deep-rooted and determined malig- 
nity that nothing short of a complete reconciliation 
can destroy. Whether we could apologize for this 
conduct or not without knowing the nature of the 
difficult}^, we could at least regard it as a natural out- 
growth of the relations existing between them. But 
suppose the one party should visit the other with 
offices of kindness ; should proffer him terms of re- 
conciliation easy and reasonable, and should convince 
him of the sinfulness of his conduct and the advan- 
tages of an amicable settlement of the difficulty. 
Now, should this kindness, these proffered terms of 
peace, and these clear and convincing arguments be 
rejected by the other party, his former hatred would 
at once be turned into wilful obstinacy ; he would 
incur the additional crime of ingratitude • he would 
lose the sympathy of a peaceful community ; and 
having so deliberately insulted these terms of amity, 
he would probably be permitted to enjoy all the 
gratification of his wilful and unreasonable stubborn- 



THE SIN AGAINST THE HOLY GHOST. 179 

ness. His character cannot remain uninfluenced by 
this proposition of peace. He must be made either bet- 
ter or worse by it. It was intended to make him better, 
but he chooses the other alternative of being made 
worse. You perceive clearly that he is made worse 
— not by any additional actual offense committed 
against his adversary, but by a mere resistance to the 
conciliatory influences flowing from a generous and 
forgiving heart. You perceive, further, how his re- 
sistance may justify the other in leaving him severely 
alone, and may thus extinguish the glimmering hope 
of reconciliation. 

Xow apply this principle to the hostility of man in 
relation to God, and tell me whether the sinner's oppo- 
sition to the Holy Ghost in his office of an Enlight- 
ener, or Advisor, or Persuasive Monitor, is not more 
aggravating, than when it arose merely from the moral 
blindness of a nature sunk in all the stupidity of a 
constitutional alienation from God. Tell me whether 
you cannot perceive a distinction between the essence 
and the office work of the Spirit ; whether sin against 
the one is not less henious than sin against the other; 
whether in the one case it is not constitutional, and 
in the other, wilful, inexcusable and obstinate ; whether 
this sin is not a settled opposition to the Spirit's gra- 
cious influences, and whether, b}^ fastening on the soul 
its deplorable consequences, this ^opposition may not 
culminate in the sinner's utter abandonment. 

ARGUMENT DRAWN FROM THE SINNER'S RELATION TO 
THE HOLY SPIRIT. 

3. But developing this idea more fully, we may see 
further that the unpardonable sin can be committed 



180 THE REFUSAL OF GRACE. 

against the Holy Spirit only in his official relation to 
the system of grace, as the vital and moving power 
which leads the sinner to repentance and into the fold 
of God. This is argued from the sinner's peculiar 
relation to the Holy Spirit. It does not require 
great sagacity of mind to perceive that he stands in 
a different relation to the Spirit than he does to the 
Father and the Son. He is at a great distance from 
either of the latter, but he is very near the former, 
even so near as to feel his movements within, plying 
him with reproofs and admonitions, unless driven off 
by wilful and persistent hostility. In conversion the 
sinner goes to the Father through the Son, but he 
does not go to the Spirit. The Spirit comes to him and 
enables him to take the two important steps to the 
kingdom of God — repentance and faith. Alienation 
from the Father and the Son is no insurmountable 
difficulty to the returning sinner, because it was meas- 
ured in its full extent, was taken into account and 
provided for in that system of redemption that sprung 
from the benevolence of God. This alienation is at 
once the occasion and the measurement of the plan 
of reconcilation, just as the depth of a well is the 
occasion and measurement of the cable employed to 
draw up its water. But an alienation of the spirit 
from the soul is an insurmountable difficulty to the 
sinner, because there is no provision for it in the be- 
nevolent arrangement for man's redemption. Now 
this thought fully conceived will open to your minds 
the deep underlying meaning of our Saviour when he 
says, " Whosoever speaketh a word against the Son 
of man, it shall be forgiven him; but whosoever 



THE SIN AGAINST THE HOLY GHOST. 181 

speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be for- 
given him, neither in this world, neither in the world 
to come." 

Now, admitting that the true interpretation of the 
phrase, "speaketh a word against," is an attitude of 
hostility to the Son, or the Spirit, we can clearly see 
wh}' the unpardonable sin cannot be committed against 
the Father, or First Person in the Trinity. The 
cable of divine love, held in the hand of Omnipotence 
and extending down to our sinful world, is not just 
long enough to reach the most respectable sinners, 
but it will reach the less, and the less, and the still 
less respectable, even though they be found at the 
very bottom of human depravity. You cannot sepa- 
rate yourself so far from the Father but that you 
may, if you will, take hold of the cable and be saved. 
When you cry out for mercy, God does not answer 
down to you, "you are too great a sinner; my cable 
will not reach you." But he says, " Believe in the 
Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved." With 
him your reinstatement into his family is a question 
of personal faith, not of personal virtue. To say that 
a person is too wicked to be accepted of the Father, 
would be to say that the cable of divine love is too 
short to reach him — a miscalculation Divine Wisdom 
could never have made. 

You see also why the unpardonable sin could not 
be committed against the Son, or Second Person in 
the Trinity. The merits of his blood are co -exten- 
sive with the most malignant case of depravity. If 
you come to him by repentance and faith, he will 
apply to you the virtues of his atonement. " Though 



182 THE REFUSAL OF GRACE. 

your sins be as scarlet, the}?- shall be as white as 
snow ; though they be reel like crimson, they shall be 
as wool." Then, this sin can be committed only 
against the Spirit, or Third Person in the Trinity. 

You can further see why the unpardonable sin can- 
not be committed in a state of grace. If a man, after 
having been washed in the blood of the Son, and 
brought under the care and protection of the Father, 
who received him so affectionately, with open arms, to 
his bosom, could so yield to a rebellious disposition 
as to sever forever his connection with the system of 
grace, then the Father and the Son, rather than the 
Spirit, would be the object of his unpardonable hos- 
tility ; and this would be, not only contrary to the 
declaration of our text, but also impossible, as we 
have already illustrated, because it would argue a de- 
fect in the provisions made for our salvation. When 
you receive Christ, you do not receive him as a half- 
Saviour, nor as an incompetent Saviour, nor as a par- 
tial Saviour, but as a full and complete Saviour. You 
receive him with all the merits of his blood, with all 
the worth of his righteousness, with all the benefits 
of his intercession, with all the energy of his arm, 
with all the pity and tenderness of his heart. Your 
redemption, your conversion, your perseverance and 
your future glory were all counted in that complete 
computation made by the divine mind when your sal- 
vation was decided upon. Christ has been given you. 
in answer to all this. " For it became him for whom 
are all things, and by whom are all things, in bring- 
ing many sons unto glory, to make the Captain of 
their salvation perfect through suffering." With 



THE SIN AGAINST THE HOLY GHOST. 183 

such a captain we shall be led on to a glorious vic- 
tory. Then, since this sin occurs in a state of nature, 
it must be committed against the Holy Spirit only in 
his relation to impenitent sinners. What else, then, 
can this sin be but an obstinate resistance to those 
awakening and persuasive influences employed by the 
Spirit to lead souls to Christ for salvation ? 

HOW MAY THIS BECOME AN UNPARDONABLE OFFENSE? 

This is easil}' explained Christ will accept all 
who will come to him by repentance and faith. Grant 
us repentance and faith, and w r e will find in the Gos- 
pel forgiveness for the greatest sin in the catalogue of 
human transgression. But withhold repentance and 
faith, and we can find no forgiveness, not even for the 
most respectable sinner who struts about and plumes 
himself with all the vanity and assurance of a self- 
righteous pharisee. If a soul be finally lost, it will 
not be because there is a want of freeness and 
efficacy in the atonement \)f Christ, but because there 
is a want of disposition to secure an interest in its 
saving virtues. "He will not" is declared of the sin- 
ner, not of Christ. Xow, a disposition to secure sal- 
vation is not natural to a soul steeped in depravity. 
The corpse, cold, stiff and lifeless, is insensible to 
the wounds that sting, the joys that thrill, the mo- 
tives that stir and the hopes that animate the living. 
Thrust into it a needle, and it will writhe in no 
agony. Throw before it gold, and crowns, and scep- 
tres of royalty, and it will feel no motive to arise 
from the torpidness of death. So it is with the soul 
"dead in trespasses and in sins." Whatever argu- 



184 THE REFUSAL OF GRACE. 

ments will move those who are alive to their eternal 
interests will fall quite vapidly upon this soul. Then, 
the prequisite steps to Christ depend for their exis- 
tence upon divine influence. " For it is God which 
worketh in you both to will and to do of his good 
pleasure." Our Saviour says : " No man cometh 
unto me except the Father which sent me draw him." 
The Holy Spirit is the divine agent employed in 
drawing souls to Christ. He quickens the soul, 
awakens its powers, makes it sensible of its con- 
dition, and prepares it for the reception of the truth 
and promises of the Gospel. The wax that receives 
the impression must be softened, or the seal that is 
to impart the impression to the wax must be heated. 
The Spirit, however, does both. He both softens the 
heart and drives, red-hot, into it the truth as it is in 
Christ. But this, the greatest of all blessings, car- 
ries with it a most terrible danger, and may be turned 
iuto a calamity for which there is no remedy. If the 
Spirit should be so provoked as to leave the sinner, 
then he is irrevocably doomed — not because Christ 
rejects his plea, but because he presents no plea. 
Christ's complaint is still, " they will not come to 
me that they may have life ;" but the terrible conse- 
quences of a settled opposition to the Spirit's per- 
suasions are upon the poor abandoned soul, and he 
wills not, he repents not, he believes not. And are 
we creating a false alarm when we tell the incor- 
rigible sinner that he is in imminent danger of 
bringing upon himself this deplorable crisis ? Have 
we not already illustrated, by a very familiar analogy, 
how reasonably the Spirit may retire from his 



THE SIN AGAINST THE HOLY GHOST. 185 

breast? If the rejection of terms, and entreaties, 
and arguments, intended to effect a reconciliation be- 
tween contending parties, will increase the turpitude 
of former enmity to wilful obstinacy, and maj r pre- 
vent a renewal of these conciliatory measures, then, 
why may not also the rejection of the pursuasive ap- 
peals of the Gospel strengthen the guilt of the sin- 
ner's rebellion and weaken the impression of the 
Spirit's influence, until the one settles into a con- 
firmed habit and the other dies out in a final retire- 
ment from the soul ? This is the Unpardonable Sin. 
May the good Lord save us from such a calamity ! 

Hence this sin is not a single act of iniquity. As 
a fatal disease resulting from vice cannot be traced 
to a single instance of indiscretion, but to habits of 
dissipation inimical to the laws of health, so this sin 
is an accumulated offense culminating at last in the 
departure of the Spirit. Every sermon heard, but 
slighted, every conviction felt, but suppressed, and 
every adjournment of repentance to another season, 
will carry you nearer that awful point beyond which 
the wooing of the Spirit will never again be felt. The 
very sermon we are now sounding in }^our ears will 
either "be a savor of life unto life or a savor of death 
unto death." 

We may also infer that this point may be reached 
many years before the abandoned soul enters eter- 
nity. As a man may live for weeks or months, 
though his lungs are almost consumed and the sen- 
tence of death is upon him, and as the criminal who 
has been convicted of murder may be held in dur- 
ance a long time before he is executed, though he is 



186 THE REFUSAL OF GRACE. 

now legally dead — so the man from whose soul the 
Spirit has finally retired may be granted a long re- 
prieve before he is summoned to appear before God 
in the other world. Such characters may be quite 
numerous, but we cannot detect anything about 
them sufficiently unusual to indicate their condition. 
You may meet them in your daily pursuits ; you may 
mingle with them in the social circle ; you may con- 
fer with them in your business engagements ; you 
may solicit their advice in unexpected and dangerous 
emergencies ; you may even sit with them in the 
sanctuary of the Lord and hear them complimenting 
the talent and culture of the man whose appeals from 
the sacred desk will never arouse them to action. 
Some of them may even exhibit those amiable, gen- 
erous and attractive qualities of natural virtue which 
aclorir human character and spread such a charm over 
society. But they are doomed ! The sermons they 
hear, the funerals they attend, the afflictions they 
suffer and the bereavements which wring their 
hearts will never agitate their breasts, will never 
awaken a concern for their souls, and will never form 
in them a purpose to forsake sin, implore forgiveness 
and secure eternal life through the intercession of 
our Redeemer. I know not but that such characters 
are before me at present ; I know not but that the 
very words I am now speaking are falling upon some 
ears as insipidly as an old worn-out song that can no 
longer enchant the heart with its melody. 

SCRIPTURAL ILLUSTRATIONS. 

And do not the Scriptures sustain this view of 
the unpardonable sin? Are we not exhorted to 



THE SIN AGAINST THE HOLY GHOST. 187 

quench not the Spirit, to provoke not the Spirit, to 
grieve not the Spirit ? Is not the reason upon which 
these injunctions are based proclaimed by God, him- 
self, when he says, " My spirit will not always strive 
with man?" Have we not man}' painful illustrations 
of the fatal consequences of God's spirit ceasing to 
act as our persuasive Monitor ? 

The inhabitants of the old world had been fre- 
quently impressed by the Spirit and admonished tofor- 
sin and embrace righteousness; but they u hardened 
their hearts and stiffened their necks;" the}^ incurred 
the additional crime of wilfully defying their Maker 
whose patience finally became exhausted, and they were 
given over to destruction. When God closed the door 
of the ark behind ]S"oah,*he also closed against them the 
door of mercy. They had committed the unpardon- 
able sin. Though for seven days nothing unusual 
was seen in nature, yet they were as certainly doomed 
as if, at that moment, the earth had opened and 
swallowed them up as victims of divine wrath. 

The history of King Saul most radiantly exhibits 
the constituent elements of the unpardonable sin. 
He was deposed, not because of any gross outward 
offence against the divine law, but because of the " re- 
belliousness " and " stubborness " of his heart. Samuel 
said to him, u because thou hast rejected the word of 
the Lord, he hath also rejected thee from being king." 
He was rejected when the Spirit of God left him and 
David was anointed as his successor ; and although 
he retained his kingdom for ten years (which cir- 
cumstance is an illustration of the fact that the 
sinner may be abandoned a long time before death), 



188 THE REFUSAL OF GRACE. 

jet from this time* his career was that of a God- 
forsaken monarch ; his character was that of a man 
enslaved by jealousy, treachery and the most malig- 
nant and diabolical tempers of a depraved nature ; 
and his history was that of a man " waxing worse and 
worse, 7 ' which should be held up as a warning to us, 
" lest we also be hardened through the deceitfulness 
of sin." 

David understood that the Spirit's departure w T as 
an irreversible calamit}-. When he became guilty of 
the most shocking crimes he did not deprecate the 
temporal judgments denounced against him, but he 
knew if the checks and guides of the Spirit should be 
removed, like Saul, he would run to ruin ; hence he 
most touchingly prays, " Create in me a clean heart, 
God, and renew a right spirit within me. Cast 
me not awa}^ from thy presence, and take not thy 
Holy Spirit from me" 

When our Saviour came near and beheld the city 
of Jerusalem, he wept over it, exclaiming : " If thou 
hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the 
things which belong unto thy peace ; but now they 
are hid from thine eyes." This is an affecting lamen- 
tation over an irrevocably doomed city. Though 
our Saviour uttered these pathetic words nearly forty 
3"ears before the Roman army — God's agent of wrath 
— executed upon this city the sentence. of ruin; and 
though he had sufficient compassion to prompt him 
to interpose in its behalf, and sufficient power to ar- 
rest the threatened judgment, yet so inexorable w*as 
the necessity arising from the administration of 
Jehovah that not even the pit} 7 of his heart nor the 



THE SIX AGAINST THE HOLY GHOST. 189 

energy of his arm could reverse the divine decree 
that consigned this city to destruction. 

John says. " There is a sin unto death ; I do not 
say that he shall pray for it." This is certainly a 
remarkable declaration, and probably illustrates 
more fully than any scriptural illustration I have yet 
made both the nature and the irreversible character 
of the unpardonable sin. The M sin unto death " re- 
lates to a death either corporal or spiritual and 
eternal. If we read the context,* in which we learn 
that the power of conferring eternal life is invested 
in the Son, and in which we are taught that believing 
and consistent prayer is the exercise through which 
we obtain, either for ourselves or others, the rich 
favors of God, it is certainly not reasonable to sup- 
pose that the apostle would so soon descend from his 
high contemplations, would so suddenly drop Jesus, 
the Giver of eternal life, would so unexpectedly 
transfer our thoughts from a superior to an inferior 
blessing, and would encourage a suppliant spirit 
with a motive of infinitely less value so soon after 
having dwelt with animation upon the most valuable 
bestowment of mercy, by teaching us that a continu- 
ance of mere temporal life will be given in answer to 
our intersession in behalf of an erring brother. This 
descent of thought from the most sublime display of 
divine love to a mere temporary privilege would be 
a very unusual and unaccountable reversion of feel- 
ing. And further, it is not reasonable to suppose 
that he would speak of the life given in answer to be- 



*1 John v. 



190 THE REFUSAL OF GRACE. 

lieving prayer as a transferable blessing, as he does 
when he sa}'S, " he shall give him life for them that 
sin not unto death," if he simply meant the continu- 
ance of physical existence. Then the life of which 
he speaks is spiritual and eternal ; and, therefore, the 
death mentioned in this relation is not capital pun- 
ishment nor the melancholy results of sins which 
affect and destroy our physical energies, but is also 
spiritual and eternal. But what makes the distinction 
between " a sin not unto death " and " a sin unto 
death?" It is not the merit of sin, because all sins, 
by a legal sentence, are unto death. We are all 
rushing unto death, unless we have left this fatal 
road in quest of life. 0, where is life ? " God hath 
given us" — and here we may shout hallelujah! — " God 
hath given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 
He that hath the Son, hath life ; and he that hath not 
the Son, hath not life." Life and death are before 
us. The sins of those who go to Jesus are "not 
unto death," but the sins of those who will not go 
are " unto death." They are unto death because 
they are not washer! away in the blood of the Lamb. 
It is not, then, the nature of our sins, but the attitude 
of our souls in relation to this " new and living wa}' " 
that makes our salvation either a possible or an im- 
possible thing. If this attitude is one of vigorous 
opposition to the way of life, carried on amid the 
struggles of an enlightened conscience, and subsiding 
at last in a fatal determination to remain in the way 
of death, then it becomes the " sin unto death." 
Then there is nothing very strange about this sin. 
It is simply an opposition to Christ, which finally 



THE SIN AGAINST THE HOLY GHOST. 191 

provokes the Spirit of grace to leave the sinner to 
his own choice, and permits him to have a free, un- 
checked passage down the road to hell. And here 
we come out again at the same point at which we 
came out in our other arguments. But the apostle 
further says, " I do not say that he shall pray for it." 
It is certainly our duty to pray for all whose salva- 
tion may be secured. . Therefore, this release from 
the duty of making intercession for this sin implies 
the irrevocable nature of the doom it fastens upon 
the poor forsaken soul. When the physician, on 
leaving the room of his patient, shakes his head and 
says, "you need not give him an}' more medicine," 
then we have an evidence that he must die. But as 
we have not the gift of spiritual discernment, we 
must pray and preach at random, hoping that, while 
our supplications and entreaties may be as an old 
song to some, it will be a sweet savor of life to others. 
Thus there is running through the entire Scrip- 
tures a well-defined principle, and if we bring this 
language of our Saviour to this touch-stone, then the 
sin against the Holy Ghost is a wilful and persistent 
opposition to his influence, culminating at last in the 
sinner's abandonment ; but if we do not, then it is an 
unaccountable phenomenon of depravity, and well 
may we ask whether it comports with infinite wisdom 
to threaten us with a doom the cause of which is in- 
explicable. 

CONCLUSION. 

In concluding the discussion of this painful subject, 
my mind naturally adverts to three classes of persons 
who may now hear my voice — to the one, with most 



192 THE REFUSAL OF GRACE. 

tender sympathy ; to the other, with most profound 
regret ; and to the still other, with most earnest so- 
licitude. my poor distressed hearers, who are en- 
slaved by a groundless fear of having incurred this 
sin, can you not obtain relief from this discourse ? 
From a wrong apprehension of this sin, you have be- 
come victims of a most acute and even morbid sen- 
sibility. The current of your existence, which should 
be peaceful and happy under the influence of the 
Gospel, is poisoned by a continually preying and 
malignant dread. You have probably selected from 
your past history a sin which you invest with all the 
terrors of an inexpiable offense, and have too readily 
yielded to it the prerogatives of a foul spectre to 
haunt you through life. I deeply sympathize with 
you; and a principal object of this discourse is to 
lead you by the hand out of the darkness, out of the 
thorns and briars, and out of the cold, dank malaria 
of this horrid place of despair, and to conduct you 
into a beautiful plain where jou may bask in the sun- 
light of God's countenance, may pluck beautiful 
flowers of divine love, and may breathe the pure and 
enlivening atmosphere of a blessed assurance. Your 
fear arises from a mistrust of either the goodness or 
the sufficiency of Christ ; that is, you make Christ, 
instead of the Holy Spirit, the object of the unpar- 
donable sin. Have we not already proven that this 
sin cannot be committed against the Son? Have 
we not already told you that Christ is willing and 
able to wash away your sins, even though the}^ be of 
the deepest dye ? Have you a tender conscience ? 
Do you regret your sins ? Do you desire more light, 



THE SIN AGAINST THE HOLY GHOST. 193 

more grace, more knowledge ? Have 3^011 a relish 
for the laws, the ordinances and the sanctuary of 
God ? Do yon seek the sanctification of your hearts ? 
Then yon may be certain the Spirit has not left yon. 
Your very dread of this sin implies a spiritual sensi- 
bilit}- never felt by the abandoned soul. 

But in adverting to those of you who are insensible 
to every persuasive appeal of the Gospel, I tremble 
to think that you will never be shaken out of your 
earthliness — that the Spiritual Dove, which so fre- 
quently visited your souls with the olive branch of 
peace, has finally flown back into his heavenly window, 
never, never again to visit your obdurate hearts. And 
what can I do for you ? I may shed tears over you 
as our Saviour did over Jerusalem, but they can only 
be tears of hopeless regret O, the saddest condition 
a man can be in on this side of hell is to sit under 
the Gospel with a dead, stupid, untouched heart. I 
must, therefore, leave you, to say something to those 
who may yet be reclaimed. 

my dear impenitent hearers who still feel the 
movements of the Spirit, I feel for 3-ou the deepest 
solicitude. I feel that \ am speaking to persons who 
to-day may hear and obey, but to-morrow may be 
sunk in all the stupid ity of death. Did you ever sit 
by the bedside of a dying relative and watch him as 
he was sinking into a coma — the forerunner of disso- 
lution ? Do y ou remember with what painful feelings 
3^ou anticipated the event when he should lie breath- 
ing before you, but as insensible to surrounding ob- 
jects as though he were tying cold in his coffin? 
Can you not recall the urgenc3^ with which you com- 



194 THE REFUSAL OF GRACE. 

municated to him a few important words before the 
nickering lamp of reason should be blown out ? Then 
you have an idea of the solicitude I feel for you to- 
day. 0, I urgently entreat you to " quench not the 
Spirit !" Stop now in your mad career! To-day, if 
you hear the voice of God, harden not your hearts by 
another moment's delay ! I feel the importance of 
pressing you to an immediate decision to arise and 
go to Jesus. I am painfully aware I have no time to 
lose in admonishing you. I now see you sinking into 
a spiritual stupor, the shadow of perdition, which 
may be thrown over many years of your earthly ex- 
istence, but in which you will be as insensible to the 
Spirit's suggestions as if you were sunk into the 
lowest depths of hell. O, the thought of being dead 
in life and amidst the light and privileges of the 
Gospel ! " But Jesus will accept me at any time if 
I go to him." Aye, yes ! if you go to him.i The 
whole controversy turns on the word, if. If you go 
to him, he certainly will accept you. But are you so 
certain 3 T ou will go to him? This }^ou will not do 
unless the Spirit draw you. Can you not gather an 
intimation of your danger Jfrom this moment's ex- 
perience ? If your power of resistance is now suf- 
ficient to withstand the calls of grace, do you sup- 
pose you will be less fortified against the suggestions 
of the Spirit after your hearts have been encased in 
an iron obduracy accumulated from repeated refusals 
of salvation ? It is a mercy that Christ died for you. 
It is a mercy that the divine Messenger admonishes 
}^ou. Then your resistance closes for the present 
against your souls the only avenue of escape from 



THE SIN AGAINST THE HOLY GHOST. 195 

ruin. But further, if the gift of Christ, if the wooing 
of the Spirit are visitations of mercy, then your re- 
sistance is something more than mere refusal. It is 
a contempt of divine goodness — an ingratitude suf- 
ficiently base to provoke the heavenly Monitor to for- 
sake you. Then you shall have forever closed against 
j r our souls the only avenue of escape. 0, I insist 
upon an immediate acceptance of grace. " Seek ye 
the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him 
while he is near. Let the wicked forsake his way, 
and the unrighteous man his thoughts, and let him 
return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon 
him ; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. " 



THE END. 



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